hope this picture works...and hope someone can help.

The leaves themselves do not look damaged. It looks like some sort of catepillar poop. Have you tried brushing it off? Maybe you have tomato hornworms. I can't say I know waht their droppings look like, but I'd figure something like that.

Yeah, looks like Tomato Hornworm poop. Look your plants over carefully and you will probably see some limbs denuded of all the leaves. They have voracious appetites and can do a lot of damage in a hurry. Here is what it will look like. Get it off, squish it or feed it to the birds asap.
Bill P.

It looks like the leaf above and to the right had been nibbled on.

yeah, I have some nibbling going on...
Hornworms...poop...I'll buy that!
Haven't seen any worms tho...
I tried brushing off the leaves, but they are too dense & too many.
Think I will have to resort to some sort of insecticide.
Any suggestions?
Thank you again.

Thank you for your responses.

Think I will have to resort to some sort of insecticide.
Any suggestions?

First, look for the hormworms b'c they are large, running sometimes several inches long. And then remove them manually and stomp on them.

But, if you see white dots on their backs let them be b'c it means they're parasitized with wasp eggs and when the wasp larvae hatch out they eat the hormworm for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Other than that the best product to use is called BT, or Dipel, which is an organic product that has a special strain of Bacillus thurengiensis (BT) which is active against hornworms and other caterpillers.

please check the label b'c there are several different BT products that have different target populations and you want to see hornworm or tobacco worm noted on the label as being a target.

Carolyn, who is a bit confused about the Basil since as far as I can remember hornworms don't attack basil, but I didn't do a Google search to confirm that.

I just figured that they crapped on the basil that it was growing below where they were browsing, or gobbeling on the tomato plants. Could be wrong.
Bill P.

My husband and I really looked over the plants...not a hornworm in sight! I googled to see what they look like...yech...
Would lizards eat them? We have lots of wasps, not sure if they're the parasitic type.
The basil has holes too, but I'mnot that concerned cuz I have enough basil to last forever...and the green bean leaves are chewed..

they camoflage very well in tomato plants...

what you want to look for is stripped branches...just stems...if you see this, you will definitely find the worm close by.

also..those droppings looked very fresh...if you look above the droppings...you'll most likely find the caterpillars as well. they don't move quickly. as a matter of fact...they hardly move at all. keep in mind...these caterpillars start out small, but grow to be about 4 inches long. they look just like a rolled up tomato leave when they're on the plant.

if you want to spray for them...use BT. caterpillar killer.

~a

Like Andrea said, they camouflage very well. They really do look like just a curled tomato leaf. Search and re-search right above that poop, and you'll more than likely find the tomato hornworm.

Gonefishin hit it right on the head. Check his link... shows the frass (looks the same to me). I don't know just how Bill does it but he is the best. Great link Bill.

Also as mentioned above -
--what you want to look for is stripped branches...just stems...if you see this, you will definitely find the worm close by.
if you have any branches stripped, it is definitely the hornworm. You may be looking right at it and not seeing it.

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Good Luck,
Gumby_CT

Here is a link that might be useful: Here is what it will look like.

Thanks Gumby! It has probably been said before that I don't know crap, but this may be a first in saying that I do! ":^)

I probably should have made mention in the first posting that I made in this thread, that the link also has pictures of the eggs of the parasitic wasp on one of those hornworms if one scrolls down a little way.

Those droppings is a dead give away about 99.9% of the time I think. I have only found one this year. They may have all drowned. Our most unusual rainy weather continues and it is really beginning to get me down. It is causing damage (although my damage is noting compared to many around us) but I am beginning to wonder if it is ever going to stop. I picked the first two big Brandywine Sudduth that had just begin to start to turn color today, both had split on the bottom overnight. Oh well ~ ~
Bill P.

one other thing...just brushing the plants won't make the caterpillars fall. they have a SUPER death grip on those branches!!! i've found them before and had to practically squeeze the poor things to death to get them off the plants!

i prefer bt....i hate touchin em!

I use scissors...done.

Found just one last year, kinda surprising. Didn't have any for a couple years before that.
Scissors work for slugs too.