[Kleftiwallah]

Just back from a crackin' holiday to find no cabbage white butterflies bashing their heads against the netting.  Have they gone?

Cheers,  Tony.

[mumofstig]

Still a few about here, today - but the storms forecast for the end of this week, should put paid to the last of them.

[heygrow]

I'm fighting a loosing battle with the caterpillars still! 
I did not net my Kale and Broccoli against cabbage whites earlier in the summer (big mistake), but got them covered by mid August.
Despite being covered and almost daily removing caterpillars I am still even up to today removing handfuls of caterpillars of each plant.
Can anyone explain this? I have not seen any butterflies inside the net since I covered them and not seen any flying around recently. How come the caterpillars are still appearing in such quantity?! Is it possible that so many eggs were laid back in August that they keep on hatching over a long period of time.
I'm starting accept I have lost all my kale as it has been eaten to nothing and the Broccoli leaves are shredded although there are some florets growing.
Very upsetting!!

[mumofstig]

what size holes does your netting have - they have to be 7mm or smaller.

[heygrow]

MoS,

It's enviromesh since August, so no holes of any consequence.
I'm thinking they have built a tunnel! 

[Mr Dog]

I don't remove my brassica nets until November at the earliest and  even then I'm loath considering the pigeons.

[AnneB]

Round here we have pigeons the size of turkeys, so the netting stays on throughout.  If you don't net it, you don't get it - the cabbage that is.

[rowlandwells]

join the club Heygrow i have had the same problem we grew  brassicas in pots in the poly tunnel spayed sprayed and fed um they looked lovely then planted them out in netted raised beds with some good manure so one would think sorted

 then went on hols for 5 days come back to a string vest of would be brassicas stripped to the bone kale and all but 2 plots back the plants I gave him  no holes hole's  and set in a bed with no nets and no pigeon damage

and i sprayed my plants with garlic spray prior to planting  I've been looking at many organic home made sprays to resolve the caterpillar problem for next season so if anyone can give me a good recipe for an organic spray to use next season it would be most helpful

[heygrow]

Rowlandwells,
Yes, I would also be interested in an organic solution for next year.
Mine are still netted from pigeons, but have now removed the enviornmesh as it was not helping and actually preventing me from easily getting in to physically removing the caterpillars by hand.

Interesting observation yesterday and today, as I stood watching wasps going in through the bird netting and finding caterpillars that I had missed on my brassicas and picking them up and taking them off (I assume for their Sunday lunch  ). I did not know wasp did this, but are much appreciated helpers!

[rowlandwells]

that's interesting news about the wasps heygrow i have been using a garlic mix using garlic powder but i don't think I've got the mix quite rite if i hear any more suggestions on a good organic mix i will  update you RW