Do tomato plants emit a certain chemical that repels flies?

Question

if so, what is the chemical called?

Answer 1

No, but they do breed tomato worms which can destroy a plant while remaining camouflaged.

Answer 2

Plants respond to herbivores like white flies (Trialeurodes vaporariorum) by releasing a blend of volatile chemicals tailored to signal to a white fly predator. This means the plant calls for the specific predator for this herbivore. Inside the tomato the chew injury is signaled with jasmonic acid  (JA) or salicylic acid (SA). This begins the production and release of the blend of volatiles to attract predators.

http://www.onderzoekinformatie.nl/en/oi/...

Synthetics have been tried to induce plants to release HIPVs. Controlled-release dispensers of methyl salicylate (MeSA), methyl jasmonate (MeJA) or (Z)-3-hexenyl acetate (HA) can induce plants.

http://www.springerlink.com/content/p845...

Answer 3

Tomato plants repel me.  My arms get all itchy if I brush up against one.

P.S. I am human and not a fly.

Answer 4

No, tomatoes don't emit anything like that. They are, however, very tasty with a bit of salt on them (the tomatoes, not the flies).