The butterfly cabbage butterfliesis a troublesome pest of cruciferous vegetables. The green caterpillars of the white caterpillar damage cabbage leaves, gnawing numerous holes in them. Such damage occurs en masse in the summer. It is therefore worth finding outhow to fight caterpillarsin the vegetable garden before they damage our cabbages. See what are proven home remedies forecological control of cabbage miteand learn about the best spraying for this cabbage pest!
White cabbage soup - adult butterfly
Fig. pixabay.com
What does cabbage butterflies look like?
Bielinek cabbage soup(Pieris brassicae) is a fairly large, creamy white butterfly with a wingspan of about 5 to 6 cm. The corners of the first pair of cabbage leaves are black or brown in color. Adult females have 2 oval black spots on the first pair of wings. In males, these spots are absent, which makes it easy to distinguish individuals of both sexes. The second pair of wings in both males and females look identical - they are white with a pair of black small spots at the top.
The larvae of cabbage beetle are yellow-green caterpillars with a black headand black spots of various sizes and three yellow stripes on the sides and on the back. Their body is covered with numerous hairs. The caterpillars of the cabbage caterpillars can reach a length of up to 4.5 cm.
Caterpillars caterpillars - symptoms and harmfulness
Caterpillars caterpillars are troublesome pests of cabbage. The symptoms of the presence of caterpillars on cabbageare mainly numerous holes in the leaves. Plants attacked include head cabbage and Chinese cabbage, but also cauliflower, kale, broccoli, kohlrabi, rapeseed and mustard. Among ornamental plants, nasturtium is most often attacked.
Holes in the leaves of cabbage bitten by caterpillars of the cabbage caterpillar
Fig. depositphotos.com
The cabbage caterpillarscan eat up the entire flesh of the leaf, leaving only the thicker nerves. In this way they cause leaf skeleton and grazing birds.You can see green caterpillars of cabbage cabbage on the leavesfeeding singly or in groups.
Caterpillars of cabbage moth on vegetable plantsusually appear in the period from July to August, and may still feed in September. During this period, the flight of moths of the second generation takes place, the females of which lay their eggs on the underside of the leaves of cruciferous vegetables.Eggs are laid in beds from 15 to even 200 pieces, and one female can lay up to 600 such eggs.
Cabbage seed eggsare oblong, ribbed, up to 1.2 mm long. Immediately after folding, they are creamy, and over time change color from yellow to orange. You can easily see them by looking under the leaves.
Bielinek cabbage soup - eggs and caterpillars
Fig. depositphotos.com
The time from laying eggs to hatching of the caterpillars is only 7 days, while the feeding and development of the caterpillars lasts up to around 2 to 4 weeks. Adult caterpillars of cabbage moth leave the cruciferous plants and look for a place for pupation and wintering.The pupae of cabbage mothare green-gray, oblong with black dots, up to 2.5 cm long. They winter attached to fences, branches of shrubs and trees, as well as the walls of buildings.
Bielinek cabbage soup - chrysalis
Fig. depositphotos.com
The second generation of cabbage moth , whose caterpillars feed in the summer, is harmful to cruciferous vegetables. After wintering in the spring, the first generation hatch, but its caterpillars feed mainly on weeds, without damaging crops. Sometimes in October there is also a sparse third generation of cabbage cabbage soup.
Good to knowThe symptoms of feeding the caterpillars of cabbage cabbage can resemble damage caused by earth fleas or caterpillars of the Mallard moth. A mistake in identifying the perpetrator of damage on plants can make it difficult to control the pest. This mainly concerns fleas, which are fought using slightly different methods than butterfly caterpillars.
Cabbage butterflies - ecological control
Bielinek cabbage is a common and very nuisance pestin the cultivation of cabbage and other cruciferous vegetables. Fortunately, it can be fought ecologically, and gardeners have theirhome remedies for cabbage cabbage , thanks to which the occurrence of the pest can be limited enough so that it does not threaten crops on a plot or in a home garden.
1. Remove weeds
The occurrence of cabbage moth can be reduced by removing weeds in the spring, when the first generation of this pest develops on the weeds. It is good if there are no wild weeds in the vicinity of our vegetable garden.
2. Coordinate cultivation with herbs
It is also worth planting plants in the vicinity of cruciferous vegetables, the smell of which deters or confuses cabbage butterflies.The following herbs can be used to deter cabbage cabbagesuch herbs as: hyssop, sage, thyme, lavender, marjoram, mint and decorative marigold. The most popular, however, isplanting cruciferous vegetables in tandem with tomatoes and celeryTomatoes planted next to cabbage scare away not only cabbage, but also ground fleas and cabbage stigma.
3. Plant nasturtiums
It is also worth planting nasturtiums around the cabbage beds.They area delicacy of cabbage soup and they will distract butterflies from the cabbageAt least some of the eggs will be laid on nasturtiums instead of cabbage and it is the nasturtiums that will be eaten by the hatching caterpillars.
Caterpillars of cabbage beetle on the leaves of nasturtium
Fig. depositphotos.com
4. Remove caterpillars and eggs of the endosperm
If we want to prevent damage caused by caterpillars, we shouldcheck cruciferous vegetables for eggs or caterpillars from JulyIf underneath the leaves we see egg deposits or caterpillars eating holes in the leaves of cabbage, cauliflower or broccoli, remove them immediately by hand. At other times, it is worthalso remove the chrysalises of cabbage cabbagenoticed near the garden.
5. Spray weeds and herbs
After spotting the caterpillars, it is worth doingspraying on the cabbage plant, , which you can prepare yourself at home based on herbs and weeds. These natural,home remedies for cabbage cabbage soupis an extract of yarrow, tansy or tomato leaves. It is worth noting, however, thatonly spraying the yarrow allows you to fight caterpillars of the caterpillarsSpraying tansy and tomato leaves must be done earlier, during the flight of butterflies, and their aim is to discourage the females of this pest from laying eggs on cabbage.
To preparespraying of tansy cabbage , make a decoction of this plant. For this purpose, 500 g of ground fresh tansy herb or 75 g of dried herb should be soaked in 10 liters of water for 24 hours, and then boiled for 20 minutes. Spray the plants with this decoction without diluting it after noticing the presence of butterflies.
Bielinek cabbage soup - caterpillar
Fig. pixabay.com
To prepareyarrow cabbage seedlingspray 1 kg of fresh, flowering plants or 100g of dried yarrow with 10 liters of water and leave for 24 hours. Then we cook it for 30 minutes. After it has cooled down, without diluting it, spray the plants on which caterpillars feed.
To preparetomato leaf spraywe need to pour 150 g of tomato leaves and shoots with 10 liters of water and set aside for 2 hours. The extract is used without dilution during the flight of white cabbage butterflies.
Ready-made cabbage mulch spraying
If the caterpillars on cabbage, cauliflower or broccoli are scarce, in garden cultivation conditions it should be enoughmanual picking of the caterpillars and spraying the yarrow pest invasion, it will not happen without stronger spraying, which we buy in garden stores.
As the threat threshold requiring spraying on the caterpillars of cabbage beetle , 3-4 egg beds or 10 caterpillars per 10 plants can be assumed. So, on average, one caterpillar per one cabbage.
For the spraying of cabbage soupit is worth using primarily the biological preparation Lepinox Plus. It contains the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. Kurstaki, which is harmful to the caterpillars of butterflies. This agent works selectively, it only fights pests and is safe for beneficial insects.
For amateur useLepinox Plus is packed in 3x10g sachets10g sachets should be dissolved in 3-5 liters of water, so it fits the most common garden sprayer capacities. This amount is enough to spray 100m² of crops. This preparation can also be used to combat other cabbage pests, such as cabbage moth and cruciferous moth.
You can also use : Karate Gold and Deltam preparations for spraying cabbage caterpillars. However, these are chemical sprays that we should only use as a last resort. The more that the biological Lepinox Plus does the trick really well: -)
