Do brassicas need netting over winter?

[Curlykale]

I am growing some Asturian tree cabbage and it has now got too tall for the debris netting 'cage' and is getting squashed. Is it safe to take the netting off? When do the butterflies/caterpillars stop being a problem? (I don't have a problem with pigeons).

[CaroltheCarrot]

OOh want to know the answer to this one but was too afraid to ask

[arpoet]

I netted my winter cabbages last year, but the weight of snow broke down the netting and the snowy netting then froze on the crops making them very difficult to pick. Then, where i managed to removed some of the frozen netting the flying pigs had a feast day on what was exposed. The only thing the didnt attack were the kale plants growing between my bean sticks. However, i will use netting again if only to thwart the flying pigs and hope we dont have too much snow and ice like last winter.
roger

[Snadger]

I fear that although you may not have had problems wih pigeons in the past, you WILL have in the future if you leave them uncovered.
Pigeons get really hungry during the winter as there isn't a lot for them to forage. My walking stick kale and sprouts were decimated by them sitting on top of the plant and eating the tops out!
If you are vigilant though you can always cover at the first signs of damage!

[Two_Sheds]

As Snadge says: any pigeons in the area WILL find exposed brassicas to eat. They will land on the netting and peck through it, so I've had to make a cat's cradle out of black cotton in past years, suspended above the netting.

Either that, or make tall guards (chimney style) out of chicken wire

[Curlykale]

Thanks guys - I'll just have to make taller cages!