cabbage moth control suggestions wanted (forum)

Mikey Mike starts with ...
Hi, Does any one have any pesticide free suggestions to murder the green caterpillars of the cabbage moth, They have destroyed heaps of plants in my vege garden, I have squished so many and there are so many of the white butterflies flying around in our neighborhood, garlic spray doesn't seem to work.

Time: 20th October 2010 10:37pm

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Itdepends says...
Either fine insect proof netting, DIPEL (Yates product- a naturally occurring bacteria that kills the caterpiller after they eat an infected leave.

Alternatively- give up like I did and only grow cabbages, cauliflowers etc in winter.

Daniel

Time: 20th October 2010 11:10pm

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Diana says...
Hi Mikey,

Two other ideas are to spray with molasses solution (seems to work in my garden, but you need to repeat when it washes off), or hang up white shapes that look like cabbage moths, on fishing line over the vegie patch. I tried this by cutting out shapes from ice cream container lids. I'm not sure if it works, but it looked like moths avoided the shapes (the idea is that they don't like huge amounts of competition for food for their larvae, so females will look elsewhere if there are lots of moths around). It was fun, anyway.

Dipel definitely works.

Diana.

Time: 21st October 2010 12:05am

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Charles cant spell says...
Paper Wasps are the number one predator in my garden for caterpillars. You need a water source and either have appropriate trees (pines, ivy headge something thick) nearby or create some dense area (out of the way) for them to nest.

I grow a large bed/crop of mustard at the end of winter, as the first hatch of caterpillars of all types comes out they hit the mustard crop.

This allows an early and strong food supply for the wasps which I have in abundance. Once I am happy with the amount of wasps around I dig the mustard crop in. The wasps then protect all the other crops as the desperately try and make up for the loss of food supply.

The mustard also doubles as a nematode/green manure crop for wherever you choose to plant it.

That said it has been a very bad year for aphids and caterpillars due to the very warm spring. And no late frosts.

Time: 21st October 2010 12:43am

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snottiegobble says...
Tried the white butterfly shapes on sticks amongst the brassicas & it simply DOESNT WORK! Now I have a plague of the tiny fawn/ grey moths called cabbage moths. They are the most destructive because their caterpillars are too small to see. So dont get confused over white cabbage butterflies & cabbage moths as they are entirely different species. Having said that how do I save my kale?

Time: 21st October 2010 12:48am

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Jantina says...
Hi Snottie. We've had really good results with some 1/2 inch netting (nylon or polyester type). Put some sticks or something to hold the netting up off the plants, drape the netting over and down to the ground, if it's windy at your place you may have to pin it down in some way, and Voila,no poisons and no caterpillars. Apparently something about them not wanting to damage their wings getting thru the netting.

Time: 21st October 2010 9:13am

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snottiegobble says...
Thanks Jantina, I will pick some netting up from Bunnings. The F.S are growing well. Great idea about the paper
wasps Charles, you are obviously impervious to their stings though! They seam to nest anywhere down here, under fence cappings,in the eaves of sheds,& in calistemon trees, so I painfully found out while pruning one!!

Time: 21st October 2010 4:11pm

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amanda says...
Cheap nylon curtains from Good Sammies will work too! (may be cheaper..but not always...fetes are a great place to nab em)

Time: 21st October 2010 7:17pm

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Julie says...
Snottiegobble, I agree - paper wasps seem to nest anywhere. I have them under eaves every year, plus the sides of pots and bags.

I have to (reluctantly)destroy those, as their sting really is vicious. I moved a pot recently, and found wasps starting a nest around the lip. Luckily I found it early.

Time: 21st October 2010 9:13pm

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amanda says...
If u ring the Ag Dept - they will relocate the wasp nest for you (at least they used to?)

Time: 21st October 2010 10:23pm

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Mikey Mike says...
Thanks for all those tips this morning I got up very early and found 8 white butterflies sleeping in my peach trees they didn't move and were so easy to catch.
I too have hundreds of tiny little brown moths I didn't think they were doing any damage maybe they are too.
Are paper wasps those black and yellow ones? I don't normally start to see wasps until it starts to get really hot.
I had thought about some sort of netting idea. Infact I wonder if I should just make a huge frame covered with fly wire for my whole garden to cover veges and fruit trees but I guess the slugs and slaters would still manage to crawl under. Off to Bunnings I go.
Edit
I have thought about getting a couple of ducks.

Time: 22nd October 2010 12:20pm

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snottiegobble says...
Hey MM I was told that coffee grounds are ideal for the prevention of snail around the base of plants. It seems that when they ingest the caffein it gives snails a heart attack!! Anyway its worth getting friendly with your local cafe & offering to empty their coffee tube because the grounds are slightly acidic & can right the alkaline of sheep manure & worm juice & azaleas, rhodes & camelias love it.

Time: 25th October 2010 1:07am

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Brad says...
I didn't notice any effect on slugs or snails using spent coffee grinds

Time: 25th October 2010 1:14am

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Dave (poppy) says...
Have come up with a way of reducing the amount of cabbage moths and getting exercise at the same time???
Get some kids badmington rackets and swat them. Give them to your grandchildren and make a game of it. I have 12 grandchildren when they visit I give them a racket. It gets them outside and away from the TV and its a bit of fun.WARNING they have a tendency to swat the plants as well. Other than that netting or Dipel.

Time: 10th April 2011 10:27am

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George says...
In the US, we have the cabbage butterfly. It is about 40cm in size with wings that are greenish white with one or two black dots.

If I am careful, I can pinch them by the wings when they land on a flower. When I am lucky, I can grab them in flight with my hand an crush them. But the best, and most fun, way to nab them is by spraying them with soapy water (made by mixing about 1 teaspoon of dish washing soap -- non-scented and non-colored is best for your plants -- with about 1 liter of water). I fill an empty, clean window cleaner spray bottle with the soap solution. When they are sprayed, they fall out of the air, because their wings absorb the soapy water, and they cannot fly. Then I grab them by the wings and crush them underfoot. I was able to bring one down that was flying 3 meters above the ground.

The soap solution will not harm most plants, and can be used to kill other soft-bodied insects, such as aphids, caterpillars, leaf hoppers, and mites. Just try not to spray your beneficial insects.

Time: 30th June 2011 7:05am

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snottiegobble says...
Hi George, thanks for your imput. The insect you describe is one & the same but for some reason Australians insist on naming them " moths". Britain has 2 varieties, the greater, & the lesser cabbage butterfies, but thankfully we only accidently imported the lesser. They can reach nearly plague proportions some years by breeding on wild brassicas.
The true cabbage moth is even more destructive in Australia by being insignificant & laying hundred of eggs that turn into small cream caterpillars. Cauli & broccoli heads are particularly vunerable.



Time: 30th June 2011 12:17pm

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Spacespud says...
Dipel was the biological control. As far as I know u can still buy it. Wormwood also moves them on.

Time: 20th November 2012 6:52pm

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sp says...
i didn't know snails had hearts!

Time: 1st December 2012 1:51pm

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wurmster says...
Dried crushed egg shells create a barrier that snails DO NOT like. Haven't had a snail problem since I started using. Cabage moths on the other hand, like a whole lot more than just cabbage.

Time: 5th December 2012 2:46pm

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denise1 says...
A tennis racket is perfect for getting cabbage moths and good practice too. Helix tosta is a steiner preparation that I have found to work with snails. Sprinkle the water around foliage and the snails go away in disgust. Put out crumpled plastic etc for their refuge and then put in freezer or squash them. Or give to chooks.

Time: 5th December 2012 3:06pm

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Julie says...
Wonder if this would work for slugs too? Where did you get it denise?

Time: 5th December 2012 6:13pm

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denise1 says...
In Australia you can get it online at Homeopathy Plus. It repels slugs too, although sometimes you get some slugs hiding inside a lettuce -though not actually eating it.

Time: 5th December 2012 8:45pm

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Julie says...
It sounds disgusting, but I collect snails after rain and put them in a 4 litre container. Cover with water, put on the lid, and after a while you have fertiliser!

I figure they put back some of what they have taken.

Time: 5th December 2012 9:21pm

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terre says...
thank you so much. where did you get the insect netting?

boy is this a beautiful day!

terre

Time: 3rd March 2013 7:13am

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snottiegobble says...
Badminton or squash racquets are lighter & easier for the elderly to swipe the little white buggers! Glad to say we now have an abundance of Monarch / wanderer butterflies at present & I believe it is due to the new fad of releasing them at weddings where they instinctively fly onto anything white!

Time: 4th March 2013 1:31am

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amanda says...
Got a heap of Monarchs up the road here too SG...it's been years since I have seen them :)

Time: 4th March 2013 12:49pm

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Mike says...
I am glad the cabbage butterflies can't handle the tropics but they are on the tablelands.Monarchs are all over just like the the milkweed they feed on.
It has been a quiet year for ulysses,birdwing and red lacewings.This infernal heat must be to blame.I can't wait for minimums to get down to the low 20's.

Time: 4th March 2013 7:57pm

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VickiB says...
Cabbage moths are territorial so I made some fake moths & strung them up with fishing line I disn't see one moth this year not one chew mark on my cabbages brocolli or cauliflower I wrote an article on my blog letsgrowvegetables.com if you'd like to read the whole article
Pictures - Click to enlarge

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Time: 27th October 2016 8:26am

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kasigarden says...
White butterflies can be a real nuisance in the garden. They seem to come out of nowhere and can quickly overrun your plants! If you’re looking for ways to get rid of white butterflies

Time: 20th November 2022 2:46am

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