The skin of the tobacco hornworm has microscopic spines which are longer and closer to the setae than those of the tomato fruitworm. Shiny and reddish-brown at first, they become dark brown before adult emergence. The tobacco budworm has a similar distribution but is more abundant in warmer regions, whereas the tomato fruitworm is more abundant in cooler regions. In North Carolina, fruitworms occur throughout the state but are generally more severe in the southern Coastal Plain. The tomato fruitworm feeds on at least 16 cultivated plants.
Corn is the most important host of the tomato fruitworm.
The tobacco budworm does not infest corn, but both species are common on cotton and soybeans. Cotton, soybeans, tomatoes and tobacco are the only cultivated crop hosts of the tobacco budworm in North Carolina. Wild hosts include deergrass and toadflax. Damage - Fruitworms, primarily the tomato fruitworm, feed on tomato leaves and fruit. Distorted leaves often result from feeding upon the tips of the leaves in the developing bud.