1. You are growing their favorite
food
As you can guess
from their name, cabbage worms primarily attack plants in the cabbage family, but are not exclusively cabbage
feeders. Plants that cabbage worms find the most tasty are:
- Broccoli
- Cauliflower
- Brussels
sprouts - Collards
- Kale
- Turnip greens
- Radishes
- Other cabbage
greens
2. You have holes in your plants
Since cabbage worms
are such voracious eaters, as little as 2 or 3 worms on your plants can spell disaster for the overall health of your
broccoli or other plant.
Common signs
will be holes in your leaves. A
simple google search can connect you to many pictures of cabbage worm damage.
3. You notice dark green
droppings on your leaves
A tell-tale sign
that you are becoming infested with cabbage worms are their
droppings. When
you start to notice dark green droppings on your leaves, inspect
the underside of your leaves as
that is where cabbage worms tend to lay their eggs.
4. A lot more butterflies present
Since caterpillars
are in essence the larvae stage of caterpillars, if you start to notice
more butterflies hanging
around your garden, chances are, you have an infestation of cabbage worms or if you experience one of the
previous symptoms, it might be too late.
5. Time of year = Spring or summer
Spring and summer are the time
of the year that cabbage worms have awaken from their Winter slumber and are
now in search of food and laying their eggs.
Organic control of cabbage worms
If you have
experienced this infestation in the past or for those proactive gardeners who
are getting prepared for the already started 2012 gardening season, the most
common and popular organic control for cabbage worms revolves around the use of
bacillus thuringiensis or BT.
This natural
bacteria eliminates cabbage worms through ingestion. One of the most popular BT
products is Safer® Brand Caterpillar Killer with BTand is available in
an 8 ounce concentrated formula or in Safer® Brand Garden Dust, which
is a powder formula and is OMRI® Listed.
Your turn
In the comments
below, let me know if you have noticed cabbage worms in your garden
