NewsAgricultureHow silicon turns tomato plants into mean, green, pest-killing machinesThe plants ooze a larval toffee that essentially starves tomato pinworm larvae The South American tomato pinworm (Tuta absoluta) is damaging tomato plants on four continents. Adding silicon nanoparticles might be a solution to combat the pests.Costas Metaxakis/AFP via Getty ImagesBy Sarah Schwartz1 hour agoSilicon powers more than electronics: In tomato plants, it fuels a complex defense system that could help farmers use fewer pesticides.Tomato plants on four continents are currently under attack from the South American tomato pinworm (Tuta absoluta), which destroys billions of dollars of crops each year. The impact can be particularly devastating for small-scale farmers in Africa, where the pest has invaded over the last decade, says chemical ecologist Baldwyn Torto of the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology in Nairobi, Kenya. These pinworms, also known as tomato leaf miners, have become resistant to heavily used chemical pesticides, says ICIPE molecular biologist Fathiya Khamis so new solutions are urgently needed.