Cabbage loopers

marjstratton

Most of the summer I have had no problem with cabbage loopers. A few of the caterpillars that I have had to kill. We have just had a couple of weeks of cool rainy weather and now it is warming again. The cabbage looper have destroyed several leaves of my chard which they hadn't even touched before. What would be your best way of dealing with them since I have been looking on leaves for eggs and worms and haven't seen any.

kbmbillups1

I gave up on my cabbage. Too many caterpillars! I plant chard in the winter because of those nasty things. I go out once a week and either pick the bottom leaves or rub the eggs off of them and leave them on. That's the best thing I've found.

This might sound crazy but my cucumbers were being destroyed by some kind of caterpillar that was eating holes in them. Nothing I tried worked so I had the crazy idea to cover the entire plant to keep whatever it is out but the only thing I had was tulle left from making a prom dress a couple years ago. It worked!!! Only problem was after a week I realized I needed some bees in there. So I decided since the tulle sticks to the cucumber plants why not cover all of the cucumbers with it. It probably sounds crazy but it's working! I'm sure I have the weirdest looking cucumber plant around.

All that to say maybe try covering them once you knock all of the eggs off.

jowitt.europe

this summer I found many caterpillars and cabbage loopers on my broccoli, kale and Brussels sprouts. So far I collect them and put in salt solution, but the leaves are damaged, of course. I do a round almost every day.

@kbmbillups1 my cucumbers vanished almost a month ago. I thought it was because of heat, but, as I read your post, I thought it might be some insect as well. I have to check again.

shllnzl

The cabbage moths are desperate here. Last year the worms attacked my landscape plant that has sharp hairs on the leaves. This year they were trying to kill my small spearmint. One year they were trying to devour my snow pea plants.

Expect to find them on any type of green plant.

kbmbillups1

@jowitt.europe In my garden today and found a cucumber I hadn't covered that had a hole in it. Cut it open and found one of those tiny green caterpillars that eat everything!

Covered a couple more teeny tiny cucumbers. So glad I found them first!!

Attaching pictures one of which is my crazy looking cucumber patch.

marjstratton

My thoughts are that I will try some diatomatious earth around the base of the plants and Neem oil on the leaves. I have been hand picking the worms and squishing them when I find them. I sure have not been finding as many as I have read that even one female can lay in a season. I did put some worm castings on the ground around the plants and have been finding the worm on the soil rather than on the leaves. Putting them is some salt in a container sounds like a good idea too.

shllnzl

My story about the snow peas invasion: I had only three feet of snow peas growing, yet I killed over 100 cabbage worms with my bare hands. Those worms and aphids I will squash bare handed; I hate squash bugs as much, but can't quite make myself touch them directly.

Instead of trying to detach the many feet of the tomato hornworm, I just cut off the tomato branch OR just cut the worm in half where it sits and just leave it there.

Quite the gruesome subject, isn't it? I have made great strides from the insect phobic teenager of my past.

kbmbillups1

@shllnzl OMG!! 100 of them! I don't even want to imagine! I hate squash bugs as well! I've been knocking them into a cup of soapy water. I don't mind picking hornworms off. Thankfully I haven't had any this year.

marjstratton

A couple of days since I put some diatomaceous earth on and around some of my plants. So far, I think a bit less munching on some of the plants that I put the powder on, but one large chard leaf was attacked. May have to make sure I get each plant thoroughly surrounded with the powder or there may have been a worm on the leaf that I didn't see.