How to get rid of cabbage and its caterpillars
Miscellaneous / / July 02, 2023
Use natural remedies or special preparations.
What cabbage and its caterpillars look like and how dangerous they are
Cabbage is a white butterfly with dark patches on its wings. It is also called the whitefish, as it belongs to the family of the same name. It lives for about 30 days and is not dangerous in itself.
Another thing is her offspring. From about April to September, the butterfly actively breeds, laying eggs on plants. Mostly cruciferous in her field of vision - all kinds of cabbage, radish, radish, turnip, horseradish, arugula and rapeseed. But also white can choose nasturtium, onion, garlic and other crops.
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Cabbage butterfly. Frame: Russian field / YouTube
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Cabbage eggs. Frame: Cycle of Life / YouTube
After about 1–2 weeks, the eggs hatch into caterpillar larvae. These voracious creatures begin to eat the leaves of plants and are able to leave you without a crop quite quickly. On average, one cabbage caterpillar lives about 40 days.
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Cabbage larvae. Frame: Cycle of Life / YouTube
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Adult caterpillar. Frame: Cycle of Life / YouTube
Another hypostasis of cabbage is a chrysalis, which is located on the leaves. It does not cause much harm to plants. After 2 weeks, a butterfly emerges from the cocoon.
To save the harvest, it is important to fight cabbage at all stages of its development: scare away butterflies, destroy eggs, caterpillars and pupae.
How to get rid of cabbage with sugar syrup
Sweet will not affect the cabbage and its offspring directly. The syrup will attract wasps to the bed, which destroy the caterpillars to feed their larvae.
Dilute 200-300 g of sugar in 1 liter of water. You can take hot so that the crystals dissolve faster. Pour the finished syrup into small cups, saucers or containers. You can also use old jam or jam. Place the bait in the garden between the plants. One container is enough for 1 m².
Another option is to spray the leaves of the plants with a sweet liquid. This won't harm the crop, but it will just as effectively attract wasps.
How to get rid of cabbage with onion peel
Specific smell Luke will scare away butterflies and will not allow them to acquire offspring in your beds.
1 liter of dry onion peel pour 2 liters of hot water. Let the mixture stand for about two days at room temperature. Then strain the liquid, dilute with water, bringing the volume to 4 liters. Stir 1 tablespoon of liquid soap into the infusion. Spray the plants generously with the resulting product.
If necessary, you can repeat the procedure.
How to get rid of cabbage with tomato leaf infusion
To prepare a repellent, any part of the tomato is suitable. You can even launch stepchildren. Put 1.5 kg of greens in a large saucepan, pour 5 liters of hot water and leave to infuse for 3-4 hours. Then place the container on the stove, bring to a boil, reduce the heat and cook for another 3 hours. After that, cool the contents of the pan, strain it through cheesecloth or a sieve.
Dilute the resulting infusion with water in a ratio of 1: 2, stir 1 tablespoon of liquid soap in it, and then carefully spray the plants.
How to get rid of cabbage with wood ash
The easiest way to scare away butterflies is to generously sprinkle the plants with dry ash. And if you make a little effort and prepare a solution, you will also be able to get rid of cabbage caterpillars.
Mix 250 g of wood ash and 1 tablespoon of liquid soap in 10 liters of water. Leave the solution to infuse for a day at room temperature. Then strain the mixture through a cheesecloth or sieve. Spray plants generously, trying to hit both the top and bottom of the leaves.
How to get rid of cabbage with coniferous infusion
Belyanka and her offspring do not like the scent of pine needles. Go to the forest to collect pine cones, branches or needles and ate - any parts of these trees will do.
Approximately 200 g of the material found, pour 1 liter of hot water. Leave the mixture for about a week at room temperature. Then strain, dilute with water in a ratio of 1:10 and spray the plants in garden and vegetable garden.
How to get rid of cabbage with the help of special preparations
In stores and garden centers, you can find pest control products - insecticides. They effectively destroy eggs, caterpillars and pupae, and also scare away the whitefish. There are biological preparations made on the basis of bacteria, such as Lepidocid, Fitoverm and Aktofid. They are harmless to plants, beneficial insects, pets and humans. True, bioinsecticides work best in warm weather at temperatures from 18 to 32 degrees.
Chemical preparations are effective in any conditions. But most products should be applied no later than 2-3 weeks before harvesting, so that no harmful substances remain in ripe vegetables and herbs. Popular mixes are Iskra, Karate, Senpai, and Herold.
Before using any product, carefully read the instructions - it contains the methods for preparing the solution and the consumption rate. The essence of the action of the drugs is similar: you need to spray the plants in dry, calm weather. Sometimes the manufacturer recommends repeating the treatment after a while (this is also indicated on the packaging). Carry out the procedure early in the morning or late in the evening so that the preparation does not burn the leaves of plants under the influence of sunlight. And when working with chemicals, use gloves, a mask or a respirator so as not to harm your health.
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