Yes, it must be the caterpillar doing all the damage. I have now looked it up, and there is a tomato moth, whose larvae do just that and leave their black droppings everywhere, which are apparently called frass, and is more nutritious for the soil than compost! I'm not sure whether the soft greenish stuff is eggs or what? Its all rather disgusting! Fortunately I also read that its harmless to humans.
Moth caterpillars seem to be particularly damaging, we had one nearly hollow out the stem of an Acer a couple of years ago. Others known collectively as cutworms live on roots & stems often in the soil, you don't know they are there until your plant collapses.
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Yes, it must be the caterpillar doing all the damage. I have now looked it up, and there is a tomato moth, whose larvae do just that and leave their black droppings everywhere, which are apparently called frass, and is more nutritious for the soil than compost!
I'm not sure whether the soft greenish stuff is eggs or what? Its all rather disgusting! Fortunately I also read that its harmless to humans.