Caterpillars in the Garden

Caterpillars can be a major pest of fall vegetables, particularly cabbage, kale, collards, broccoli, and cauliflower. Seedlings and young plants may be killed by caterpillar feeding if left untreated.

Caterpillars are easily controlled in vegetable gardens, especially when detected early. In addition to non chemical methods, insecticides are available for control, including several organic products.

Understanding Caterpillars,

Caterpillars, also referred to as worms, are the immature life stage of butterflies and moths.

Most of the caterpillars that are pests of vegetable crops are moth caterpillars.

For caterpillars to infest your garden, a moth must first fly in and lay eggs on your plants. Eggs may be laid singly or in clusters.

A small caterpillar will hatch from each egg a few days later. As caterpillars feed, they grow larger and often change color.

Most caterpillars feed for two to three weeks, and then enter a cocoon as a moth and lay more eggs. Caterpillars are easy to detect by the ragged holes their feeding activity leaves in plant foliage.

If you notice holes in the leaves of your crops, be sure to check for caterpillars both on the top and backside of plant leaves.

For healthy, established perennials, trees, and shrubs, losing a portion of their leaves is not a problem. In vegetable gardens feeding damage is more serious since young plants can easily be killed and missing leaves mean less produce. Plus, who wants to eat caterpillars with their cabbage?

Come back tomorrow to discuss how to control caterpillars in our garden.

Yours in tthe garden Farm2Markt