Turtles ? Wowza. Doubt it round here (suburban south-central Pa.)
The humidity goes up and down, depending on soil moisture, temperature, etc. The tank is mostly to prevent any dripping on the floor, and to hold the lights away from the plants. Right now, the lights are resting on two, rectangular aluminum bars, which span the tank. Ideal humidity is variable; herbs are pretty tough in that regard. They’d grow fine in the open air indoors, even with low humidity. I grew a lot of plants under high-power lights indoors, with just solid trays under pots and flats, to catch water. In the solid flats I put spacers, cut sections of upside-down cell trays, to keep the plant containers above and out of any drained water.
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Eastern Box Turtles range up into Maine, and often enter suburban areas. You never know. It’s less aggravating a thief than, say, a rat or raccoon.
Do rabbits eat tomatoes ?
Are you sure it’s rabbits?
I had yard full of tomato plants a few years ago with an infestation of rabbits in the area and never lost any tomatoes.
I did take lots of pics of them as they scuttled between the rows of pots, and they “posed” by freezing into what they must have believed was invisibility 
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I’m not at all sure, hence my question.
I doubt it. My experience is that the following animals eat tomatoes: raccoons, rats, box turtles, squirrels, opossums, groundhogs and voles (plants and fruit). I’m not sure about chipmunks; but it wouldn’t surprise me if they ate them, too. Check the gnaw marks for clues.
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The only eaten fruits were very low to the ground and this is how the damage looks. Previously you mentioned hornworms but I can’t find any evidence of them. I think it’s a mammal .
Hmmm… I took a close look at the damage and there are no obvious tooth marks. That’s very unusual for mammals. Caterpillars would leave noticeable droppings. You haven’t seen evidence or caterpillars. Given the clues, especially the smooth-edged damage, there’s another possibility: Slugs. If you have those invasive Limax maximus, they could easily be the culprits. Go out after dark, especially if it’s damp, with a flashlight. The large, spotted slugs are voracious plant eaters. If there is anything they can hide under, near the tomatoes, flip those over.
If there’s even a small opening in a protective bag, slugs can ooze through. I’ve no idea if hot pepper repels them. I kind of doubt it, since my sweet potatoes, dusted with cayenne powder, show signs of snail/slug damage. Slug trails, shiny remnants, might be visible; but those are not blatantly obvious.
I’m so grateful for your expertise, thank you.
I actually posted an OLD photo from my earlier issue; I agree those don’t look like tooth marks of any kind. So that’s Mystery Pest A.
Yesterday’s Pest B was different and I failed to snap a photo of the results. Definitely “toothy” and gnaw marks. And whatever it was gnawed and left tooth marks on the organza bag as well.
So far only tomatoes very close to the ground are impacted ; I’ve removed any remaining ones.
Beautiful, on all counts!
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A small green cherry tomato with the chewing marks.
A manager at the local nursery told me this is the worst year she can remember in terms of people coming in looking for repellants for their vegetable gardens. She says she hears and has personally experienced squirrels raiding tomato plants. That’s shitty news because those suckers are impossible to deter. Especially once they’ve enjoyed the buffet I have on offer.
I bought some blood meal and a granular repellant called Repels-All. After it rains, I’ll apply it.
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I hope that works!
What might make this year the worst? Looking for water maybe?
What would have such small bites, and have access to those cherry tomatoes? In my yard I’d be thinking a hornworm, but I am really only familiar with mine.
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Every chewed tomato so far has been very close to the ground.
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Also two days ago I bagged a tomato in an organza bag with a drawstring and sprayed it all with anti-rabbit spray made of hot peppers. It was chewed from the outside.
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That happened to my figs last year!
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Those are gorgeous! What kind of flavor do they have?
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That sounds like raccoon or opossum damage. They both leave puncture marks, which are similar to if you poked the bag/fruit with a fat nail. Both are suburban pests.
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