No clue I’m not a gardener by any stretch. Wife up in the cities visiting the grandkids I’m on dog duty. The neighbor lost her tomato plants we have plenty so I picked her some.

Several looked like they were peeled with shallow bites that looked fresh no clue what’s doing it never came across this before. For not having hoppers early on we sure have them now the big ones and the fun size one could they be doing that?

Before I read your post I thought grasshoppers. Will munch on green beans and cucumbers also.

Did you find any hornworms on the plants?
If not, I say mice

Deer?

One of worst for damaging tomatoes are the chickens. If they can reach them, they will eat about 1/3rd, but it's hollowed out and left ragged bottom half. Horn worms similar, top half and smooth?

never seen that. ?

My guess would be a dog. I had a Lab that would go through the tomatoes testing them for ripeness and he would only take the ripest on the plant. The toothmarks on the one on the right look like the work of a dog doing the same as my old Lab did.

Moosetrot

Mine is done by a grey squirrel.







my last lab enjoyed yellow squash, he would eat it like a snowcone held between his paws an eating it.

My guess is chipmunk or mice.

No deer to speak of, did not see anything even on the tomatoes when I went back to check but look how fresh it is very confusing. Only dogs are my helicopter A/C live on their couch mutts never outside alone. No chickens the neighbors ducks spend a lot of time hanging around we put out food/water for them. The garden is fenced off from when we had chickens a few years ago I’ll close the gate now. A few cats around but that’s about it.

I did notice what looks to be scat the shape of mouse turd but it’s a flat stain amoeba looking stain. I’ll slap a game cam on it and see what pops.

No grain here could be rats but the area in not gouged more peeled looking. Might one of my civets my habitat areas only 20 yards away.

No squirrels or gophers with the cats and neighbors always shooting such things a few rabbits but the tomatoes impacted are on the top of the plants not the bottoms.

Mice will climb tomatoes.

Ha, I was ready to say rabbits.

Rabbits worked over my MIL's tomatoes but only what they could reach. Don't know what you have going on.

Well not rabbits or this guy either. He said he was not guilty but the tomato on his face and paws make me not want to believe him. That high kind of would only leave deer around here Any tracks?



Edit to add this guy gets a pass even moved him out of the way when tilling with the tractor. seems like the wife has a resident garden animal every year. last year was a garden snake.

I suspect the snake was great and eating shrew and mice hiding out under the landscap fabric put down for weeds. Was hoping he would be back all this year but have not seen him.

Lots of suspects, hard to tell.

Looking at your pictures, my guess is its something small. Looks like its chewed on by small teeth rather than larger ones. I think a deer would leave a bigger imprint.

ol' dad

Put a trail cam on it pulled the weeds for a clear shot, faced the camera away from the sun I hope to find out in the morning.

Consider a sacrificial vine. Plant it at the end or your garden or just outside the fence it you have one. Might save your other plants and fruit. Some gardeners do this with squash also.

Opussum along with other critters will do that, deer sometimes take a bite and move on.
Doesn't look like chickens, or horn worms.
Horn worms don't bother ripe or semi ripe tomatoes, just the green ones.

It’s hitting the ones ripening mostly just peeling the surface off not biting a chunk out of the tomatoes like if you peeled potatoes the skins off but the curve of the tomato is still there.

Hump never seen that before.
Looks like something small doing it.
Chipmunks ? They steal my cherry tomatoes, find them eaten all over the garden.
Maybe that's the culprit ?
In case you don't have cherry tomatoes that is.

I say mice likely.

LD, Have witnessed SLUGS doing that. FWIW. Slugs were sighted early A.M., before the sun got over the horizon. Just my one cent thought............... Tut

I say slug also.

They look like they are being skinned.
Might catch them after dark, with a light.

Snails or slugs looks about right. That how they eat some of my prickly pear pads. Look around the base of plants under leaves and stuff. I always find them hiding during the heat of the day.

Slugs
Put a shallow dish of beer near the plants and see what you get

First Question- Are you in a dry spell? If so, put out some water for critters to drink.

Second Question- How's the weeds in your garden? Heavy weeds give rats and mice plenty of cover and ability to hide from predators. Cut down the weeds and kill rats as they scurry away.

It looks like a rodent problem to me. Eliminate their cover and that will help tremendously. Experience speaking here.

I walk the dogs a few times a night I’ll peek a look for slugs. No beer here I have clear pop that might work?

If it were slugs you would find some slime trails.

Just looked nothing suspicious but noticeable black ameba looking stains on a lot of the tomatoes. Poop of some kind.

looks like squirrel to me.

the little curved edges on the one on the right , looks like squirrel teeth to me.

they chew on gas caps here , similar pattern to the chewing.

From the eating pattern, kinda looks like hornworms.

I have had grasshoppers do that to my tomatoes.

and grasshopper fraise is what you have described....looks like mouse po- but has a curly end to it
crickets at night, but you will hear them singing

Been dropping in at night when I take the dog out I’ve not seen anything I can confirm doing it. I’ll pull the camera chip today and look that over.

Let us know what you find. That is how mine look from hoppers. We had hoppers bad year for two year and really bad. This year is good.

One of.....make that two of........or continuing, ongoing problem?

For having no hoppers a few months ago we are covered in them now every size imaginable. My neighbors ducks/chickens are getting fat on them should help the pheasant population.

I don't know what ate them but I will share what has made me near-perfect tomatoes over past three years:

ALL Organic or for organic gardening...

1.) Fungicide (if not used, you'll get blight. Spray when you plant, then a few times throughout season): https://www.amazon.com/Bonide-Revitalize-Fungicide-Concentrate-Ounce/dp/B076HW6S9K

2.) Bug killer spray #1: BT (spray this after dark or near dark because anything (pollinators) that touches it will die): https://www.amazon.com/Monterey-B-t-Bundled-Measuring-Spoon/dp/B0DS2S8TN3

3.) Bug killer spray #2: Pyrethrin https://www.amazon.com/Bonide-Products-857-Pyrethrin-Concentrate/dp/B0035HA0AK

Alternate (every few weeks) spraying #2 and #3 above. You probably only need BT, but still I use both.

4.) Sprayer (good company, cheap model but it works just fine): https://www.amazon.com/Smith-190285-1-Gallon-Chemical-Cleaning/dp/B002YNSADU

Crickets are thick also I moved a piece of cardboard the other day the wind blew around, dozens of crickets under it. When I had chickens a few years ago crickets and hoppers were hard to find.

Pulled the cam chip must be a bad chip old pics, partial pics, blank pics must be a bad SIM card I swapped it out for a different card. Wife fired up the tiller to take away some habit if she doesn’t wipe out the camera I’ll check it tomorrow. The tomato’s are finally starting to ripen I’ll see what I can find when I’m picking them later today.

Grandma swore she had toads eating her tomatoes once.

Everything here is getting fat on hoppers cats, toads, ducks, dogs, birds the window screens look like a horror movie at times. LOL if I could identify the poop stain the might help but that could be the grasshopper spit they produce lucky we have a lot of tomatoes so it’s not that serious yet. Will see what the camera shows in the morning. Mice would show up and some other critters but bugs probably not. The tilling might help some by removing habitat.