Caterpillars on brassicas

[LittlePants]

I have forgotten, as we have been out of action on veges for 6 years (long stiry on the newbie's page!)

I finally got my veg patch up and running again this summer. I have grown my brassicas under enviromesh, and they look exceedingly healthy - not a caterpillar in site, but I can't remember when the caterpillar season is really over. Is it safe to remove the mesh covers yet? The kale is ready for picking, and it would be so much easier when I can remove the frame!

I am in Cumbria UK. Does anyone know if caterpillars have finished for this year?

Thanks

[MuddyWitch]

I'm in Leicester & the little blighters are still chomping happily on my nasturtiums! Sorry

MW

ps today is Oct 5th

[Millymollymandy]

Still squidging (sigh) and butterflies still all out and about.

[Peggy Sue]

Yep saw a cabbage white this week, chased it round madly clapping my hands to catch it but alas, still it would have made a great video

Had my first brussels this week, they were lovely- despite the caterpillars swarming the cabbage and broccoli they have only eated the leaves not the sprouts themselves on the brussels, so I got really tight perfect little b.s. fro the first time ever!

[Peggy Sue]

Slugs are supposed to not like red stuff as much as green....shame it's not the same with caterpillars

[Millymollymandy]

Oh do you squidge onto the leaf? I pick them off, hold them away from me then squidge and drop. I guess everyone has their own method - I quickly learnt the 'hold away from me' technique after one squirted green goo on me!

[LittlePants]

Thanks for all your replies.

We had our first frost yesterday morning, so I am going to risk it, and remove my enviromesh cages at the weekend. They have certainly worked! I have the healthiest looking crop of brassicas I have ever had in my life!



Might post a photo once the mesh is off! (this was taken in June)

[Millymollymandy]

I couldn't do something like that because I'd need to get in to water them. What is enviromesh anyway as I haven't heard of that - is it specifically designed to be anti butterfly? Does it work against carrot root fly? (she says hopefully!)

[Peggy Sue]

Enviromesh is a really fine netting, almost like fleece. Butterflies can squeeze through butterfly netting but this will keep loads of pests out. I have to say they recommend fleece for carrot root fly though so maybe not..... anyone know for sure?

Now sqidging on leaf.... if you have 50 v baby ones on your leaf it's more time effective to just give one big squidge- but you do need to wash the leaves well before eating... and you hands

It's the first time I've seen such quantities for caterpillars, I was going to count how many I squidged per day but when they were literally so many per leaf and so small I gave up but it was 100s per day for sure.
I do now have this vision of each one being picked off by MMM and squidged at arms length individually which is fun to think of

[Millymollymandy]

Peggy Sue most of mine are HUGE and I have these horrible fat maggoty looking grubs too which spin cocoons round themselves. Believe me you wouldn't want to squidge them onto a leaf. If I do find a mass of tiny ones then yeah I do squidge onto the leaf but I don't find them much. I think mine go from tiny to 1 inch long plus overnight!

[LittlePants]

I couldn't do something like that because I'd need to get in to water them. What is enviromesh anyway as I haven't heard of that - is it specifically designed to be anti butterfly? Does it work against carrot root fly? (she says hopefully!)

Yes it does work against carrot fly, and cabbage root fly etc. The smaller enclosure on my photo was my carrot fly stopping enclosure of enviromesh, and we had no carrot fly, or cabbage root fly either!

If this years crop is anything to judge by the Enviromesh enclosures are one of the best investments I made on the new veg patch. It wasn't cheap, but will last forever, and hopefully see us through many years of bug free veges. Our patch this year has without doubt had the healthiest looking lot of veg we have ever grown! I am really impressed with the EM!

[Peggy Sue]

Peggy Sue most of mine are HUGE and I have these horrible fat maggoty looking grubs too which spin cocoons round themselves. Believe me you wouldn't want to squidge them onto a leaf. If I do find a mass of tiny ones then yeah I do squidge onto the leaf but I don't find them much. I think mine go from tiny to 1 inch long plus overnight!

I grit my teeth and squidge the biggies on leaf too, a bit more stomach churning admitedley but I did grow 10 of everything this year (ball cabbage, pointed cabbage, early brussels, late brussels, purple spr, white spr, cauli x3 etc etc!) so time was of the escence. In a perfect world I wouldn't volunteer for the job you understand