6–make that 7!–NATURAL ways to get rid of nasssty cabbage moths!!
This post was edited in June of 2016, with my complements. 😉 –AYM
I don’t think very highly of the nitwit who accidentally introduced the Small White cabbage moth (Pieris rapae) to North America. No, indeed, I don’t. He is probably a cousin to the nut who introduced the starling to this continent, perhaps even a friend of the fool who introduced the House Sparrow–was it intentional? Was it an accident? Most agree that it wasn’t a great idea, in hindsight. None of these creatures are native to this continent, and they’ve all created unwelcome havoc to the native species.
This dainty, fluttery little moth is wreaking havoc in my cabbage plants even as we speak, yes, Gentle Reader, this very moment. As soon as my back is turned, hundreds of these little moths (hey, right in front of me, even!) flutter amiably about my garden, laying eggs on all my cole crops, without so much as a “how-do-you-do-ma’am, thanks-for-the-breakfast.” Within days, the eggs (drat them) will hatch, and out will pop voracious little caterpillers, which will immediately and without invitation begin to eat holes in my lovely cabbages, my gorgeous kale leaves, and all the other brassicas in my garden.
I have one word for them:Â Grrr.
The Small White cabbage moth: Not a fan. Grrrr. (Image thanks to Wikipedia.)
I was already viewing the onslaught of these pests a bit personally this summer, as I had noticed a larger number than I’d ever seen before in my garden. But then, when two of my good gardening friends, oh, nay, actually three, mentioned to me within 12 hours’ time how many Small White cabbage moths there were chewing up their cole crops this year, I decided that Something Must Be Done.
There are times, of course, when garden pests must simply be plucked and thrown to the chickens (the tomato horn worm, for example) and other times when a pest can simply be ignored, as it doesn’t do enough damage to justify attention, and time is spent more productively in picking tomatoes, say, or green beans.
This is not one of those times.  Small White cabbage moths will make lace of your lovely kale leaves, or webs of your beautiful developing cabbages, in a very short time indeed. So. Let’s get started, Gentle Reader.
The first thing, I believe, in preparing to battle any foe, is to find out (quickly, before the cabbages are lost!) what makes that enemy tick.
So here are a few points to consider, as you contemplate how you will Save the Year’s Sauerkraut Supply:
1.Unlike many other garden pests (my personal enemy, the Squash Borer Wasp, comes to mind) which have a limited cycle in the garden year, in North America this moth is continuously-brooded, being one of the first butterflies to emerge from the chrysalis in spring, and then actually flying until hard freeze in the fall. That’s patently unfair to gardeners who try to raise lovely brassicas without sprinkling or spraying with pesticides, like, for example, moi.
2. The caterpillars that hatch are green and well camouflaged, and live on the undersides of the leaves, thus making them less visible to predators. I, for one, do not appreciate a sneaky worm.
3. This fluttery little bit of white is also one of the most cold-hardy of the non-hibernating butterflies, occasionally seen emerging during mid-winter mild spells in cities as far north as Washington, D.C., which I consider very poor taste indeed. Like any unwelcome company, there comes a time for the Small White cabbage moth to just leave, already.  Apparently nobody has ever taken the time to clue the moth in to this obvious fact.
4. I think we can conclude that this boorish pest has no manners at all.
5. These moths also have the nerve to be strong and hardy flyers, which annoys the heck out of me. Doesn’t it IRK you, too? Gosh. They have everything going for them.
You certainly can see the large hole that this cabbage moth caterpillar has eaten in this kale leaf. The caterpillar itself is harder to spot—see it?
So! Now you’ve got a good idea of what we are up against.
Now, before we make our battle plant, let me show you what we are NOT up against. When I went out into my garden to take a few pictures of cabbage moth caterpillars and the damage they’ve done, I spotted this poor little lacinato kale plant first.
A-ha! said I. “That’s the worst one I’ve seen yet!” I took a picture. “Perfect.” Thank you, cabbage moth caterpillar, thought I, for doing such excellent damage to this plant, so I can share it with my Gentle Readers. . .
You can see that the larger leaves are stripped nearly down to the center ribs.
And then! I turned over the leaves, to find the hungry little fella himself, and found–Whoa, Nelly!!
This is NOT a cabbage moth caterpillar!
The lovely creature I found making delicate lacework of my lacinato kale plant was actually the beautiful caterpillar of the Black Swallowtail (or American Swallowtail) (Papilio polyxenes) butterfly! So . . . I didn’t squish the jewel-like creature, but instead carefully moved it over to my prosperous volunteer dill patch. “Eat away!” I urged it. I have lots of dill, more than I can use, so he’s welcome to it.
I’m all for encouraging butterfly populations! Here’s the Black Swallowtail caterpillar, now happily munching on my dill, with my blessing. 🙂 Happy caterpillar. Happy me.
Of course, as soon as I told little Mack about the caterpillar, he grabbed a gallon pickle jar (empty of pickles, of course) and set up his caterpillar habitat, and then he flew out to my garden (not literally) and found this caterpillar, promptly named him “Jerry” and established him (and three cousins!) into his new habitat on the back porch. They’re busily munching on dill and thinking about building chrysalises (chrysalii?), last I checked.
Here’s a beautiful Black Swallowtail butterfly.
Okay, now back to our vile enemy, the Small White cabbage moth: I’ve been doing an informal survey on what other organically-minded gardeners are doing to battle with this innocuous-looking, yet noxious and hungry pest, and I’ve compiled a list of 7 things you can do to cheat the Small White and its hungry brood of its lunch. And dinner. And breakfast, for that matter. Then I found one more. So let’s get started.
1. A market gardener friend swears by this recipe: 1/2 cup dishwashing liquid, 1/2 cup molasses, 1/2 cup fish emulsion (ask for it at your garden center), a gallon of water, and a can of beer. She mixes it up in a large pump-type sprayer and sprays everything in her garden. She says that this recipe makes the plants all stronger and more able to withstand attacks from all sorts of pests. (Wonder if it would repel deer?)
2. This same friend also makes a solution of crushed hot peppers (not too hot, she says, or you’ll burn the plants) and sprays it liberally on the cole crops. You can also use crushed pepper flakes: bring one gallon of water and 3 Tb of crushed pepper flakes to a boil and simmer for 10-15 minutes. Let sit overnight, and load up your sprayer! Be careful when you’re doing this: the air in your kitchen will be painful!
By the way, this is the sort of sprayer I use. I love it! I mix up my solution in a 5-gallon bucket and then spray away. It works great! (click here for more info)
3. Similarly, a solution of chili powder and garlic is said to repel the cabbage moths: Crush and mince 3 cloves of fresh garlic in 2 Tb olive oil, add 1 Tb chili powder, and add to 1 gallon of water. Let sit for 24 hours or more, and you’re good to go!
4. Are you plants already infested? (If you’re reading this, the answer is probably a moaning YES)– Then here is your fix: spray them liberally with a Bt solution. This stuff works, folks. Bt is a biological insecticide (actually a bacterium that only infects caterpillars) that will control an existing cabbage worm problem. And it couldn’t be simpler: Spray the leaves, all surfaces, with Bt solution. The cabbage worms will eat the leaves and become infected by the Bt. The good news:Â the infection will kill the cabbage worms. The bad news: it won’t kill the adult moths or any eggs they may have laid on your plants. One common brand name is Dipel, which you can order easily–right–here. I’ve used this before; I keep it in my stock of garden tricks and tools, and it is reassuringly effective.
This stuff works. I keep it on hand all garden season long.
(By the way . . . since I am an affiliate of Amazon.com, if you buy anything from clicking on my links, I’ll earn a small commission, with no extra cost to you, natch’. But you knew that already, didn’t you?)
5. If you don’t have a problem already, use a floating row cover to keep the moths out of your cabbages and broccoli. If they can’t get to ’em, they can’t eat ’em. My gardening friend Erin says that these work like a charm, but you have to get the cover into place when the plants are small, and the cabbage moths haven’t found them yet.
I absolutely love using these tunnels, and it makes me feel like A Bonafide Gardener, to be sure. 🙂
This stuff is great!
Actually, this spring I spread out wide swaths of floating row cover on ALL my cole crops, and have tried to keep them in place all season so far, and I’ve seen very few little white devilish moths. 🙂 Occasionally I pull them back to pull weeds and check the progress of my plants. It works great, although you do have to watch them during storms, that they aren’t jerked up by the wind and taken to the next county. And it is most effective if you get them in place before the dainty white moths show up in the first place.
I love, love, love this stuff and use it to cover other crops, too, to protect against insects.
6. Do practice crop rotation from year to year. Don’t plant your cole crops in the same spot every year, for example, or your cabbage moth problem will get bigger and bigger from year to year. This is sound advice for every crop, by the way.
And: you’re welcome. 🙂 That’s a freebie.
7. Last but not least, when you are out working in your garden, use a bug zapper to fry the nasty little buggers! This suggestion was sent in by Gentle Reader Cheryl, and I think this is a brilliant idea, and plan to buy a couple of these next summer. And then . . . every day when I’m doing my garden walk, checking out what’s growing and what pests need to be taken care of, etc., I’m going to have one of these in my hand. I’ll buy a second one for little Mack, because I just know that he will really get into gardening if I give him this job . . . “go hit those little white moths with the bug zapper, honey . . . “
There are lots of different styles of these babies, but I like this one because it has rechargeable batteries. 🙂
So we are in good company, aren’t we?
Here’s a tiny cabbage moth caterpillar–isn’t it so cute? (NOT!) Grrr.
Now go out and arm yourself, Gentle Reader: order the Bt and the sprayer, or the bug zapper or the row covers (or all three!) and prepare yourself for battle! Onward, and–Courage! I’m right here with you in the trenches.
Good luck to you!
*hugs*
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