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Old 27-04-2004, 04:03 AM
norma briggs
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

Xref: kermit rec.gardens.edible:70347

Any suggestions for running off those pesky caterpillars? They are those
little white pest, about an inch long and they are starting to annoy me. I
work too hard growing stuff to feed it all to bugs

njb


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Old 27-04-2004, 06:03 AM
Ray Drouillard
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden


"norma briggs" wrote in message
...
Any suggestions for running off those pesky caterpillars? They are

those
little white pest, about an inch long and they are starting to annoy

me. I
work too hard growing stuff to feed it all to bugs

njb


Let the ducks eat them. Chickens will do it, too, but you have to be
careful with chickens because they also like some of your garden plants.

Or, you can pick them all off and drop them into a can of soapy water.


Ray



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Old 27-04-2004, 05:03 PM
Bill Bolle
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

norma briggs wrote:

Any suggestions for running off those pesky caterpillars? They are those
little white pest, about an inch long and they are starting to annoy me. I
work too hard growing stuff to feed it all to bugs

njb


Use Sevin dust.
Bill

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Old 27-04-2004, 07:08 PM
Katra
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

In article ,
Bill Bolle wrote:

norma briggs wrote:

Any suggestions for running off those pesky caterpillars? They are those
little white pest, about an inch long and they are starting to annoy me. I
work too hard growing stuff to feed it all to bugs

njb


Use Sevin dust.
Bill


Agreed....

K.

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Old 27-04-2004, 08:05 PM
SugarChile
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

Looks like it's up to me to disagree....

First of all, before any kind of treatment, it's always good to positively
identify the pest. There are online sites with pictures, or you can ask
more detailed questions here. It's helpful to know what kind of plants the
caterpillars are attacking, and where you live.

Once you have identified the caterpillar, you have several options. If they
will turn into beautiful butterflies, you may wish to leave them alone. I
plant extra dill and parsley each year for this purpose. You can wait a bit
and see if your local birds clean them up (it helps if you have a bird
friendly yard, with shelter and a water source). You can hand-pick them,
dropping them into a bucket of soapy water. Sometimes a sharp blast from
the hose is effective.

If you feel you need to take it to the next level, please consider using a
Bt formulation instead of Sevin. Bt is a naturally occurring bacteria that
disrupts the digestive system of caterpillars and leads to their death. It
is available in most garden centers and is not expensive. (Mosquito
"dunks", used to kill mosquito larvae, are another form of Bt.) It normally
comes as a powder, which is mixed with water and sprayed on the plants. The
caterpillars stop feeding soon after ingesting it, and die a day or two
later. It has a minimal environmental impact, although you shouldn't spray
it around indiscriminately.

Cheers,
Sue

--


Bill Bolle wrote:

norma briggs wrote:

Any suggestions for running off those pesky caterpillars? They are

those
little white pest, about an inch long and they are starting to annoy

me. I
work too hard growing stuff to feed it all to bugs

njb


Use Sevin dust.
Bill


Agreed....

K.





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Old 27-04-2004, 08:05 PM
Rez
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

In article , "SugarChile" wrote:
If you feel you need to take it to the next level, please consider using a
Bt formulation instead of Sevin. Bt is a naturally occurring bacteria that
disrupts the digestive system of caterpillars and leads to their death. It
is available in most garden centers and is not expensive. (Mosquito
"dunks", used to kill mosquito larvae, are another form of Bt.) It normally
comes as a powder, which is mixed with water and sprayed on the plants. The
caterpillars stop feeding soon after ingesting it, and die a day or two
later. It has a minimal environmental impact, although you shouldn't spray
it around indiscriminately.


Do you know a brand name offhand? I don't remember seeing any of this
stuff at local garden centers.

I have had good luck against tomato hornworms using soap-based sprays,
with the side effect that the formerly-scruffy tomatoes went berserk
and grew HUGE, and made more tomatoes than we could possibly eat.
(Probably due to potassium salts in the soap)

~REZ~
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Old 27-04-2004, 09:07 PM
SugarChile
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

Dipel is one brand commonly available in a good garden center, and there are
a lot of places online that sell it. You can also search under "Bacillus
thuringiensis "

Sue

--


If you feel you need to take it to the next level, please consider using

a
Bt formulation instead of Sevin.

Do you know a brand name offhand? I don't remember seeing any of this
stuff at local garden centers.


~REZ~



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Old 28-04-2004, 02:03 AM
Beecrofter
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

Bill Bolle wrote in message ...
norma briggs wrote:

Any suggestions for running off those pesky caterpillars? They are those
little white pest, about an inch long and they are starting to annoy me. I
work too hard growing stuff to feed it all to bugs

njb


Use Sevin dust.
Bill


Actually Sevin is a poor first choice because it is such a broad
spectrum pesticide it kills off predatory insects and pollinators
along with the target pest.
A good choice would be BT which is a bacterial pesticide that
specifically targets caterpillars and is marketed as Dipel or
Thuricide.
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Old 28-04-2004, 03:06 AM
norma briggs
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden



norma briggs wrote:

Any suggestions for running off those pesky caterpillars? They are

those
little white pest, about an inch long and they are starting to annoy

me. I
work too hard growing stuff to feed it all to bugs

njb

Thanks everyone! I really do value your advice. My policy is to use as few
chemicals as possible. I know I will always have bug problems being on the
Texas Gulf coast-bugs love that hot humid weather.

My problem has not reached a real crisis level yet... a few plants have
leaves that look like lace--but I want to be ready. I know its not the kind
of caterpillars that turn into butterflies cause they have not touched the
dill or the parsley. I plant extra dill just for those guys and gals since
they usually munch it bare. I call them caterpillars cause I don't know what
else to call them, have seen them all my life and as a kid used to think
they were poisonous to touch....lol...kids.




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Old 02-05-2004, 08:03 PM
Rez
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

In article , "norma briggs" wrote:
they usually munch it bare. I call them caterpillars cause I don't know what
else to call them, have seen them all my life and as a kid used to think
they were poisonous to touch....lol...kids.


Some of the big hairy caterpillers that turn into big pretty
butterflies will irritate the crap out of young skin. I remember
getting hives from touching them when I was a little kid, tho they
don't bother me now. So in a way, you were right

~REZ~

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Old 02-05-2004, 08:04 PM
Rez
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden

In article , "SugarChile" wrote:
Dipel is one brand commonly available in a good garden center, and there are
a lot of places online that sell it. You can also search under "Bacillus
thuringiensis "


Thankx! saved for reference.

~REZ~
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Old 05-05-2004, 11:03 PM
norma briggs
 
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Default catapillers munching away in garden



I have had good luck against tomato hornworms using soap-based sprays,
with the side effect that the formerly-scruffy tomatoes went berserk
and grew HUGE, and made more tomatoes than we could possibly eat.
(Probably due to potassium salts in the soap)

~REZ~

What kind of soap, Rez? Those with scrawny tomatoes want to know!

Ev

No kidding...I wanna know too...


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