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Grrrr....cabbage whites....
I've sown some old greyhound cabbage seeds in trays to see if they were
still viable and have had a few germinate. So I had perhaps 6-8 seedlings in two mushroom trays (the brown ones you buy mushrooms in) out on a shelf down the garden, waiting to be planted out. Yesterday they were surrounded by a crowd of cabbage white butterflies, and the tiny leaves were covered top and bottom with little white posts which I assume are eggs. One caterpillar could eat the lot then starve, let alone the tens which could hatch out. I've brushed most of the eggs off and the seedlings are now in the shed for the moment. However it may now be an even worse year for cabbages. All those down at the allotments (not mine) which are not netted have already been savaged by birds and any leaves near the netting have been got at. So much so that I decided not to plant any brassicas out for the moment because I couldn't see them surviving. There are a few home built fruit cages at the allotment and at least one plot holder is building a whole allotment cage for everything. I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. Cheers Dave R |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
"David.WE.Roberts" wrote in
: I've sown some old greyhound cabbage seeds in trays to see if they were still viable and have had a few germinate. So I had perhaps 6-8 seedlings in two mushroom trays (the brown ones you buy mushrooms in) out on a shelf down the garden, waiting to be planted out. Yesterday they were surrounded by a crowd of cabbage white butterflies, and the tiny leaves were covered top and bottom with little white posts which I assume are eggs. One caterpillar could eat the lot then starve, let alone the tens which could hatch out. I've brushed most of the eggs off and the seedlings are now in the shed for the moment. However it may now be an even worse year for cabbages. All those down at the allotments (not mine) which are not netted have already been savaged by birds and any leaves near the netting have been got at. So much so that I decided not to plant any brassicas out for the moment because I couldn't see them surviving. There are a few home built fruit cages at the allotment and at least one plot holder is building a whole allotment cage for everything. I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. Cheers Dave R Yes, David. I feel your frustration.... Baz |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
On Fri, 26 Jul 2013 10:37:56 +0000, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. I thought that was the whole point? I'll get my coat... |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
"David.WE.Roberts" wrote I've sown some old greyhound cabbage seeds in trays to see if they were still viable and have had a few germinate. So I had perhaps 6-8 seedlings in two mushroom trays (the brown ones you buy mushrooms in) out on a shelf down the garden, waiting to be planted out. Yesterday they were surrounded by a crowd of cabbage white butterflies, and the tiny leaves were covered top and bottom with little white posts which I assume are eggs. [...] I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. Oh dear. I know the feeling. My broccoli plants kept getting eaten into green lace each year, despite the usual net, so this time I've made a cage with brand new netting which is smaller gauge (5x7mm) and so far they've not been able to shimmy their way through, despite trying hard. I remembered to put cardboard collars to defeat cabbage root fly too, which was another pest that attacked last year. There does seem to be a sudden huge increase in white butterfly numbers over the last few days. The garden's alive with them atm; they seem to be partial to Scabious or Lavender flowers when they can't get brassicas. -- Sue |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
"David.WE.Roberts" wrote
I've sown some old greyhound cabbage seeds in trays to see if they were still viable and have had a few germinate. So I had perhaps 6-8 seedlings in two mushroom trays (the brown ones you buy mushrooms in) out on a shelf down the garden, waiting to be planted out. Yesterday they were surrounded by a crowd of cabbage white butterflies, and the tiny leaves were covered top and bottom with little white posts which I assume are eggs. One caterpillar could eat the lot then starve, let alone the tens which could hatch out. I've brushed most of the eggs off and the seedlings are now in the shed for the moment. However it may now be an even worse year for cabbages. All those down at the allotments (not mine) which are not netted have already been savaged by birds and any leaves near the netting have been got at. So much so that I decided not to plant any brassicas out for the moment because I couldn't see them surviving. There are a few home built fruit cages at the allotment and at least one plot holder is building a whole allotment cage for everything. I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. We used to constantly have the same problem and the self built cages/nets were never easy to get into so there was always a problem weeding. Some years ago we decided that we would buy a proper fruit cage for our brassicas 6 metre x 6 metre. Yes it was expensive but it's our hobby too so cheaper than playing golf or a season ticket for football etc. Now we can move it every year around our plot (4 year rotation) in a day, and we can both get in and weed with a hoe standing up straight which is important for me as I have arthritis of the spine. A number of other plot holders have followed our lead and bought " brassica" cages too. -- Regards. Bob Hobden. Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
On 2013-07-26 15:53:48 +0100, Indigo said:
"David.WE.Roberts" wrote I've sown some old greyhound cabbage seeds in trays to see if they were still viable and have had a few germinate. So I had perhaps 6-8 seedlings in two mushroom trays (the brown ones you buy mushrooms in) out on a shelf down the garden, waiting to be planted out. Yesterday they were surrounded by a crowd of cabbage white butterflies, and the tiny leaves were covered top and bottom with little white posts which I assume are eggs. [...] I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. Oh dear. I know the feeling. My broccoli plants kept getting eaten into green lace each year, despite the usual net, so this time I've made a cage with brand new netting which is smaller gauge (5x7mm) and so far they've not been able to shimmy their way through, despite trying hard. I remembered to put cardboard collars to defeat cabbage root fly too, which was another pest that attacked last year. There does seem to be a sudden huge increase in white butterfly numbers over the last few days. The garden's alive with them atm; they seem to be partial to Scabious or Lavender flowers when they can't get brassicas. There are some butterflies around that might be mistaken for cabbage whites, apparently. I've recently read that they've been seen in considerable numbers. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/ear...h-gardens.html -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.com South Devon www.helpforheroes.org.uk |
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Grrrr....cabbage whites....
"David.WE.Roberts" wrote in message ... I've sown some old greyhound cabbage seeds in trays to see if they were still viable and have had a few germinate. So I had perhaps 6-8 seedlings in two mushroom trays (the brown ones you buy mushrooms in) out on a shelf down the garden, waiting to be planted out. Yesterday they were surrounded by a crowd of cabbage white butterflies, and the tiny leaves were covered top and bottom with little white posts which I assume are eggs. One caterpillar could eat the lot then starve, let alone the tens which could hatch out. I've brushed most of the eggs off and the seedlings are now in the shed for the moment. However it may now be an even worse year for cabbages. All those down at the allotments (not mine) which are not netted have already been savaged by birds and any leaves near the netting have been got at. So much so that I decided not to plant any brassicas out for the moment because I couldn't see them surviving. There are a few home built fruit cages at the allotment and at least one plot holder is building a whole allotment cage for everything. I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. Cheers Dave R I've netted my brassica and still they get in the smallest gap at ground level. |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
"Bob Hobden" wrote in
: We used to constantly have the same problem and the self built cages/nets were never easy to get into so there was always a problem weeding. Some years ago we decided that we would buy a proper fruit cage for our brassicas 6 metre x 6 metre. Yes it was expensive but it's our hobby too so cheaper than playing golf or a season ticket for football etc. Now we can move it every year around our plot (4 year rotation) in a day, and we can both get in and weed with a hoe standing up straight which is important for me as I have arthritis of the spine. A number of other plot holders have followed our lead and bought " brassica" cages too. Bad luck with the arthritis, hope it's not too bad for you. For others who don't want to spend too much money, I use debris netting, held up with bamboo canes with pop bottles on top, so the canes don't wear holes in the netting. Weeding is not easy but it is a relativly cheap method. A 50m X 3m roll of bebris netting cost me £50 a few years ago. And it has no signs of rotting or breaking up. So it seems to be a one off purchase. http://tinyurl.com/pohvybr Baz |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
Baz wrote in :
"Bob Hobden" wrote in : We used to constantly have the same problem and the self built cages/nets were never easy to get into so there was always a problem weeding. Some years ago we decided that we would buy a proper fruit cage for our brassicas 6 metre x 6 metre. Yes it was expensive but it's our hobby too so cheaper than playing golf or a season ticket for football etc. Now we can move it every year around our plot (4 year rotation) in a day, and we can both get in and weed with a hoe standing up straight which is important for me as I have arthritis of the spine. A number of other plot holders have followed our lead and bought " brassica" cages too. Bad luck with the arthritis, hope it's not too bad for you. For others who don't want to spend too much money, I use debris netting, held up with bamboo canes with pop bottles on top, so the canes don't wear holes in the netting. Weeding is not easy but it is a relativly cheap method. A 50m X 3m roll of bebris netting cost me £50 a few years ago. And it has no signs of rotting or breaking up. So it seems to be a one off purchase. http://tinyurl.com/pohvybr Baz In fact it is now £35 for the 50m X 3m roll!!!!! Baz |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
"Baz" wrote ...
"Bob Hobden" wrote We used to constantly have the same problem and the self built cages/nets were never easy to get into so there was always a problem weeding. Some years ago we decided that we would buy a proper fruit cage for our brassicas 6 metre x 6 metre. Yes it was expensive but it's our hobby too so cheaper than playing golf or a season ticket for football etc. Now we can move it every year around our plot (4 year rotation) in a day, and we can both get in and weed with a hoe standing up straight which is important for me as I have arthritis of the spine. A number of other plot holders have followed our lead and bought " brassica" cages too. Bad luck with the arthritis, hope it's not too bad for you. Had it since I was about 35 so I'm used to it. -- Regards. Bob Hobden. Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
On 2013-07-27 21:11:42 +0100, Malcolm said:
In article , Sacha writes On 2013-07-26 15:53:48 +0100, Indigo said: "David.WE.Roberts" wrote I've sown some old greyhound cabbage seeds in trays to see if they were still viable and have had a few germinate. So I had perhaps 6-8 seedlings in two mushroom trays (the brown ones you buy mushrooms in) out on a shelf down the garden, waiting to be planted out. Yesterday they were surrounded by a crowd of cabbage white butterflies, and the tiny leaves were covered top and bottom with little white posts which I assume are eggs. [...] I am seriously considering doing the same because nothing is worse than putting in a load of work and a load of plants just to see them all eaten. Oh dear. I know the feeling. My broccoli plants kept getting eaten into green lace each year, despite the usual net, so this time I've made a cage with brand new netting which is smaller gauge (5x7mm) and so far they've not been able to shimmy their way through, despite trying hard. I remembered to put cardboard collars to defeat cabbage root fly too, which was another pest that attacked last year. There does seem to be a sudden huge increase in white butterfly numbers over the last few days. The garden's alive with them atm; they seem to be partial to Scabious or Lavender flowers when they can't get brassicas. There are some butterflies around that might be mistaken for cabbage whites, apparently. I've recently read that they've been seen in considerable numbers. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/ear...7897/The-UKs-b iggest-ever-survey-to-find-the-most-common-butterfly-in-British-gardens. html It doesn't matter if one is mistaken for the other. There are two species of butterfly popularly known as "Cabbage Whites" - the Large White and the Small White It is the latter that is featured in that article. The main food plants of both species are members of the Brassica family, e.g. cabbages, broccoli, etc., etc., and the caterpillars of both are capable of doing significant damage both in gardens and on farms. Both are resident almost throughout Britain, except the far north, and both populations can be joined, in some years, by vast numbers of immigrants from the continent. There is a third widespread species of white butterfly - the Green-veined White - which, when it closes its wings, is striped greeny-yellow on the undersides. They don't seem to attack garden brassicas to any significant degree. We've seen lots here and the only brassicas we grow at present are the plants we have for sale. They're all looking quite well so I wonder what the butterflies are using for food. -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.com South Devon www.helpforheroes.org.uk |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
We've seen lots here and the only brassicas we grow at present are the plants we have for sale. They're all looking quite well so I wonder what the butterflies are using for food. Nothing It's the caterpillars that feed on the plants |
Grrrr....cabbage whites....
On 2013-07-27 22:18:32 +0000, David Hill said:
We've seen lots here and the only brassicas we grow at present are the plants we have for sale. They're all looking quite well so I wonder what the butterflies are using for food. Nothing It's the caterpillars that feed on the plants Der! Yes,sloppy of me! -- Sacha www.hillhousenursery.com South Devon |
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