[Quetzal]

I'm planning my brassicas for next year. This year has proven to be something of a battle to keep the caterpillars off the (uncovered) broccoli plants - it's ended up being about a score draw, i think, with extensive casualties on both sides.

So I'm intending to grow them under some form of mesh next year. But the purple sprouting stuff we have this year is really tall - 1m+, so would have been a bit of a pain to build an effective cover for.

I was wondering how tall do the various brassica options grow?
Kohl Rabi,
Cabbages,
Calabrese
Caulliflowers (I'm intending to grow minis),
Romanesco,
PSB?

I'm assuming that the above is roughly in height order - is this right? Also, how effective is a mesh cover likely to prove against the cabbage white?

[DD.]

Approximate only - depends on variety...

Kohl Rabi, - small, no more than a 12"
Cabbages, - up to about 18"
Calabrese - 2', maybe a bit more
Caulliflowers (I'm intending to grow minis), - 18" to 2'
Romanesco, - not grown it, but I understand 18" or more
PSB? - you found that out - they about the biggest of the brassicas!

I've found a net with a small mesh - about 5mm quite effective against butterflies.

[waddecar]

I grow my PSBs under enviromesh you can get it up to 3.6m wide fromhere
very effective butterfly barrier and equally so against cabbage aphids.

3m hoops across a 1.8m bed gives enough headroom for  a row of PSBs up the middle, space for a row of other brassicas either side and enough material each side for anchorage.

Only downside is the cost  but it seems good for several seasons

[compostqueen]

Enviromesh is very good quality but the butterflies still get under it unless every little bit is battened down  

[waddecar]

Enviromesh is very good quality but the butterflies still get under it unless every little bit is battened down  :(

yup

[Steve.P]

Just had a look at the Enviromesh site as i'm looking for the same type of thing. Hate to say it but the insects won my little war :evil:. Depending on the amount you want to cover, a cheaper solution is scaffold net or otherwise called debris net. You can get this on ebay for around £30 for a 2 metre by 50 metre long roll.