flea beetles? or something else? (pic)

[cleo88]

Hi,
This looks similar to another recent posting where the diagnosis may or may not have been flea beetles.

I think I have seen this in the past two years I've been growing maters - always affects just the lower leaves, especially ones that are touching the ground. I remove the leaves. But should I also be treating for critters? I don't treat with anything typically - leery of chemically stuff, but hoping there is some sorta natural solution...

[Duh_Vinci]

It most certainly looks like a flea beetle damage to me. I too have them (actually too many), and for that reason, I usually leave the lower leafs there, so the second set up from the lower usually never being touched by them (sacrificial leafs I guess).

Later on in the season, once the plants get a little more mature, gets hot, usually flea beetles are no longer a problem, and them I clip them off...

Aside from that, the only "natural" product I find that works is anything that contains Pyrethrine in it.

Regards,
D

[cleo88]

I realized, after doing a little research, that I think there is actually a flea beetle posing for the camera in my picture. D'oh!

[Fred Hempel]

I see a flea beetle. They mostly eat our Arugula. Haven't noticed them on the tomatoes.

[tuk50]

That looks a lot like septoria.. it has grey spots in the middle of the lesions.. or both ...
just a guess on my part .. should be a few experts around here somewhere! http://www.google.com/search?q=septo...w=1054&bih=566

[RayR]

There are many different species of flea beetles and they don't all eat the same plant species.

See here

I see flea beetle damage on my mustard greens and later on in the season on eggplant leaves sometimes. I never thought about it before until I read this article that maybe my Mizuna and other mustards are acting as a trap crop for the species that hang around these parts since I rarely see any evidence of damage to other crops.

[frogwash]

I've been getting this on my maters also. Pulling off the lowest leaves closest to the ground has fixed it for me and it also seems to help a lot with overall plant health as they seem to be having lots less leaf disease this year even though it's rained more. It seems like with the tomatos they eat it just because the opportunity presents itself and by keeping the leaves a little away from the ground is enough of a cure.

I am also getting the same thing on my pepper plants, but on these it's a whole lot worse. They would they eat the leaves no matter how high off the ground--they must love pepper leaves! I had to spray my peppers as they were shredding all the foliage.