If you want to see butterflys and moths be prepared for caterpillars.

Butterflies are nice in the garden but caterpillars can cause havoc. Brassicas like Cabbages, Brussel Sprouts, and Broccoli are particularly prone to attack from Cabbage White caterpillars as you can see from my veg plot above.

Prevention and Cure for Caterpillar Damage

• Encourage the caterpillar’s natural enemies, such as wasps and birds for an environmentally sound and least cost method of dealing with caterpillar problems.
• Picking off caterpillars one by one together with any eggs is satisfying but a bit tedious if you have a lot of plants.
• Spray with soft soapy water and drop any caterpillars you have picked into soap water.
• I could have used a systemic insecticide if the EU allows and I wanted food with a residue of chemicals but that was not for me.
• A contact insecticide relies on hitting the creatures before they have done the damage and is still chemically based.
• Netting the brassicas would be a sensible prevention measure. I do that to prevent pigeons eating the young plants.
• Buy a biological control like Trichogramma wasps.They will act as parasites on the caterpillars.
• Accept that you will get some damage for the joy you get from buttterflies.

Reasons to Look After Caterpillars

• Caterpillars are an important part of the ecological mix. When they mature they help pollination provide food for wild l;ife and play an important part in the natural life cycle.
• Caterpillars turn into wild butterflies and moths.
• Carterpillars provide loads and loads of food for small birds and other creatures further up the food chain.
• Ask any small child who has been captivated by caterpillars.

Credits
Caterpillar 1 enlarged by Loco Steve CC BY 2.0
caterpillar by squeakychu CC BY-NC 2.0