Cabbage White Caterpillars
Villaverde123
Posts: 196
in Fruit & veg
I net all my brassicas but the little buggers have still got through. I suspect some leaves were touching the net enabling egg laying.
I hate to squash them (makes me feel squeamish) so can I just pull up the ravaged Cavelo Nero and put it on the compost heap caterpillars and all?
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I have some cav nero in a cage and thankfully they're untouched, but I had some over and planted them outside. There's not much left of them thanks to the caterpillars so I pulled them up and composted the lot. It'll make good compost, and I've had some revenge
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
It is 3mm and is usually OK but as you say the leaves were on the netting so that is more than likely the cause.
Thanks Scroggin and Pete8.
You could try biological warfare if you don't want to use chemicals or hand pick. But a soap based spray or one based on rapeseed oil will work too and not harm you or your veg
Do you think spiders eat the caterpillars? I've kept my brassicas un-netted and try to pick off eggs and caterpillars a couple of time a week. (I've only got a small bed with a handful of plants).
Recently there have been loads of butterflies around, and I've noticed a few little holes in the leaves. But when I inspect them the caterpillars are gone.
There are lots of pale little spiders on the plants. Do you think the spiders are doing me a favour and eating all the caterpillar? If so, there could be a market for selling the little spiders for biological warfare on the cabbage whites.