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  • Cabbage whites

    Hello all my broccoli is starting to outgrow its insect netting, if I take it off is there a good chance it will get massacred from cabbage whites? There isn't any broccoli formed and I haven't seen that many cabbage whites so far this year, what would you do?

  • #2
    Raise the netting somehow, the cabbage whites will be along shortly.
    photo album of my garden in my profile http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...my+garden.html

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    • #3
      I can't bill it really is either they get squished under the netting or take it off

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      • #4
        Originally posted by Spunky View Post
        I can't bill it really is either they get squished under the netting or take it off
        The alternative is to do what I had to do last year. I inspected the plants as often as possible and wiped the eggs off. After they hatched, I got rid of what few caterpillars there were. It proved to be very successful. A bit time intensive, but I have plenty of that!!!

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        • #5
          Spunky!

          I found myself in the said same predicament last year after being promised a cage which never arrived!

          But I found that the "Cabbage White" were really only interested in the cabbage!

          I left the Broccoli/calabrese, sprouts n swede un-covered, with minimal damage,





          But as soon as I uncovered the cabbage, it got "Decimated"



          Take from this what you will, but I'll be doing the same this year, afore mentioned stuff uncovered, cabbages netted!

          After all, it's not the leaf you are wanting to eat on broccoli! So a little damage can't be that detrimental to the outcome of the "Curds"

          That's just my opinion!
          Attached Files
          Last edited by Deano's "Diggin It"; 22-06-2014, 12:39 PM.
          "Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad"

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          • #6
            Cabbage white devastated my brassicas last year as I didn't have them netted and couldn't keep up with the manual inspections. I chose not to grow brassicas again this year purely because I didn't want to be looking at "ugly" netting in my back garden. You could try things like growing sage nearby which apparantly discourages them, but a physical barrier (netting) is your best bet

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            • #7
              Originally posted by Deano's "Diggin It" View Post
              I left the Broccoli/calabrese, sprouts n swede un-covered, with minimal damage.
              Ah, but there's nothing worse than thinking you've got away with it and after a quick soak and a wash in the sink, you check the broccoli to see half a dozen caterpillars boiling in the water!
              Last edited by Scarlet; 22-06-2014, 01:31 PM.

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              • #8
                Scarlet! That's very true! and the thought of that alone would put me off eating my home grown!

                Which is why I soak my stuff in a sink of "Salted Water" once home! Before I "Bung it" in a pan!

                Not trying to say it's a perfect solution for "Spunky's" dilemma! Just saying it's the "Avenue" I took last year faced with the same situation!
                "Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad"

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by Spunky View Post
                  I can't bill it really is either they get squished under the netting or take it off
                  If the broccoli is touching the netting the butterflies will squat and lay regardless. Can't you just rig up some bamboo canes and throw the netting over that. It really doesn't have to look pretty. It's a shame after all your hard work you have nothing to show for it later on.

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                  • #10
                    Yeah nothing worse than the half a caterpillar moment . Netted all my brassicas this year except the kohl Rabi which the pigeons destroyed


                    Sent from my iPhone using Grow Your Own Forum
                    don't be afraid to innovate and try new things
                    remember.........only the dead fish go with the flow

                    Another certified member of the Nutters club

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                    • #11
                      I'm having huge problems with pigeons... They've even nested in my grape vine! They sit and wait for me to leave and attack my gooseberries with relish, breaking most of the branches as they go! Not a happy girl!

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by AllInContainers View Post
                        I chose not to grow brassicas again this year purely because I didn't want to be looking at "ugly" netting in my back garden. You could try things like growing sage nearby which apparantly discourages them, but a physical barrier (netting) is your best bet
                        AiC I use black debris netting in my garden it seems to merge in better than white or green. Nettings not ideal for a back garden but it is if I want more brassicas than the caterpillars.
                        Location....East Midlands.

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                        • #13
                          I left my broccoli (PSB) uncovered one year and the caterpillars ate all the leaves to skeletons despite me picking off as many as I could. Unbelievably, after leaving it "to see what happened", new shoots appeared and some edible broccoli did grow. I wouldn't recommend this method though!
                          A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP. - Leonard Nimoy

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