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Shout out for bT
The aphid discussion made me think of this. I gotta give props to bT (Bacillis Thuringiensis) for hornworms and cabbage loopers.
A couple days ago, a whole clutch of hornworms hatched in my tomato plants. I squished about 30 1" long catepillars, and then mixed up a batch of bT in the sprayer, and coated the plants.
I checked the next day, and found maybe 2 or 3 more, but they had a skinny and pale front end, and they weren't moving.
The stuff gives them a tummy bug, and they starve to death. But it's safe for humans and beneficial insects.
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I will be doing some research on this. I've been finding a few caterpillars in my garden too. Gotta get bugs under control too. Thanks for sharing.
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I've known about it for years, but never been able to find it in a store.
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You won't find it in the bigbox hardware stores. Most are slaves to the petrochemicals.
Try an Agway, they sometimes carry it (tradename is Thuricide), or a farmers supply store. If they don't have it in stock, they'll usually order it for you.
Another trick with cabbage loopers and borers is to put floating row cover over the plants (if you can afford it, I can't.). It prevents the butterflies from laying eggs on the plants.
I found another thing this year that does work is to interplant rosemary bushes among the brocolli. The butterflies don't like the smell. But be sure to plant it upwind. Also give it a few whacks with a rake once in a while to bruise it and release the scent.
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True that. I ended up finding it at a regional nursery.
Also, if you have a flower garden, and want to attract butterflies, don't apply it near it. It'll kill them too.
Cabbage loopers and hornworms are moth larvae, so I don't really care about them.
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You don't normally actually see the moths. The white 'moth' you see during the day is a Cabbage Butterfly. Being a butterfly, does that make a difference when the worms eat your broccoli? ;)
On a side note, they've developed a strain of corn that has bT making power spliced into its genes. Corn borers die when they eat it. And the USDA says they don't have to tell you if YOU are eating it.
More on bT plants:
http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/ef130.asp
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