It’s raining leaf eaters in my neighborhood, and a larger area. There are fragments of leaves covering the ground. Everyone’s yard is carved out of the woods, there are tall, old trees everywhere…and they have been invaded by caterpillars of all sizes. Why go to other planets looking for odd forms of life when we have things living here with antennas and thousands of legs, already green.
We had them last year, too, but this year seems worse. We have to do caterpillar checks, make sure they aren’t carried inside to eat tender plants. And the damage they do outside…defoliating, stressing, killing trees and gardens.
Gypsy moths and winter moths…but I feel safe, the government is looking for a natural predator to keep the population down…which will become a problem eventually.
We get locusts here every 3 or so years and they do that defoliate thing and riding to work at 100kph if a pain tolerance test when they are about
Last year they ate all my tomatoes and strawberries leaving me with leafless sticks before I noticed them. I used a leaf blower on vac and mulch mode to collect as many as I can and put them all in the worm farm
I found two of the little bastards on my tomato plant today, they decimated it! I have 3 outdoor plants, does anyone know if diamataceous earth will kill caterpillars? How about neem oil?
our caterpillar invasion is fading, not fast enough…officials saying first week of July is the beginning of their end…gypsy moths now and dire predictions of a serious infestation next year.
I don’t know if DE will kill them or not, but it sure will irritate hell out of them. Since learning about DE, I’d never be without it on a grow. One thing for sure, it can’t make the problem any worse.
Have you tried Bacillus thuringiensis Kurstaki (commonly referred to as Bt-K)? It may be your best bet. It is a naturally occuring bacteria that only targets caterpillars, so you aren’t dousing your plants in harsh pesticides. Some common brand names include:
Safer Brand Caterpillar Killer for Trees, Shrubs and Vegetables
Neem oil is the great for most bad plant eating bugs and its safe for food crops
Mix 2ml in one liter of water add a squirt of cheap dish soap shake and use in a hand sprayer
The plant will love it too its like a foliar feed.
Re-spay 5-10 days later to stop the life cycle of any sucking bugs.
It will not affect good bugs (unless you spray it directly on them) because they don’t feed on the plant.
