{"id":7311,"date":"2014-07-24T08:43:29","date_gmt":"2014-07-24T08:43:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/2014\/07\/24\/5-ways-to-keep-cabbage-loopers-out-of-your-garden-3\/"},"modified":"2021-03-09T06:28:39","modified_gmt":"2021-03-09T11:28:39","slug":"5-ways-to-keep-cabbage-loopers-out-of-your-garden-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hobbyfarms.com\/5-ways-to-keep-cabbage-loopers-out-of-your-garden-3\/","title":{"rendered":"5 Ways to Keep Cabbage Loopers Out of Your Garden"},"content":{"rendered":"

The brassica family\u2014kale, collards, broccoli, cabbage and mustard, to name a few\u2014can be a fun group of crops to grow, but we’re definitely not the only ones who love them. From\u00a0harlequin bugs that devour young plants to one of the many small worms that eat new growth, brassicas have no shortage of fans. One of the more destructive brassica pests is the cabbage looper (Trichoplusia ni<\/em>), and with some ingenuity, you can keep them out of the garden without having to resort to BtK or other insecticides.<\/p>\n

Like the imported cabbageworm, the cabbage looper is small and green. The larvae of the nocturnal brown moth, it gets its name from the way it moves, arching its back like an inchworm, creating a loop of sorts, and pulling itself forward.<\/p>\n

Although green like the cabbageworm, the looper is slightly larger\u2014about 1\u00bd to 2 inches long\u2014with white stripes down its back. Moving relatively quickly, the looper feeds on the underside of brassica leaves, taking large bites as it goes. These holes are the first sign that cabbage loopers are in your garden, and soon, your cole crops can quickly turn to skeletonized plants.<\/p>\n

Take preventative action against cabbage loopers to save your plants and yourself a lot of trouble.<\/p>\n

1. Row Cover<\/h2>\n

Because the cabbage looper is a moth larva, preventing that moth from ever laying eggs on your brassicas is the best way to avoid cabbage loopers. Floating row cover, which can be purchased from most organic growing-supply stores, keeps the these moths and others from laying eggs on young plants. After transplanting any brassicas, place the floating row cover gently over the plants and weigh it down, either by burying the edge in soil or laying rocks along the sides. It can be annoying to have to remove the row cover to cultivate and weed, but a lot less annoying than losing plants to hungry worms.<\/p>\n