Little Green Caterpillars and Carrot damage

[cazp]

Hello all, it 's been a while but today I weeded and improved the soil in the raised beds and noticed a couple of potential problems...

Some little bright green catterpillars - pic attached... anyone know what type these are and how I should manage them?



A small carrot still in the ground seems to have been badly tunnelled in to by something - I suspect, but hope it is not, carrot root fly - if so it will be a first occurrence for me. Any suggestions of best approach this year if i want to grow carrots?

[rustylady]

Pick your caterpillars off by hand and destroy them. As for the carrots, it does sound like carrot root fly. Sorry

[cazp]

Thank you for advice .... I may try the Nemasys grow your own pest control... claims to cope with caterpillars and root fly... anyone tried this?

[Nicos]

Only used nematodes for slugs
- but...do be aware that if you decide to use them, you need to use them soon after delivery, store them in the fridge and apply once the area is frost free ( ie end May/June )...or fleecing the area will mean you can apply it a little bit earlier .

I sow my carrot seeds under fleece and that stays on until the carrots are finally picked. Works really well against carrot fly!

[rustylady]

Much cheaper to hand pick the caterpillars.

[salome2001]

hi cazp. I've seen some of the same crawlies. Looking forward to someone IDing them

It does sound like you've got carrot root fly in the carrots though. I got reasonable results this year with the cover with insect mesh and leave approach. I have to say that if the three varieties of carrots I planted, the "resistant" Maestro F1s did indeed have less carrot fly damage.

[KittyColdNose]

Hi cazp, I found a great website with hundreds of caterpillars on it! If you don't know the name it's a case of trawling through.

Eggs, Larvae, Pupae and Adult Butterflies and Moths

[kathyd]

I think one of the cabbage white butterflies has bright green caterpillars - I certainly found this colour on my brassicas last year, as well as the stripey ones. Think the larger butterfly has the striped ones and the smaller then green ones.

I grew my carrots in the polytunnel last year, and sprinkled mint leaves and watered with stinky garlic solution when I pulled them, and covered with fleece for a while after pulling too until the smell of carrots disappeared. They grew well, and I had no sign of bugs in them until I pulled one up recently - I left a few in the bed to use over the winter. I've not been using mint or garlic or fleece for weeks, so maybe they actually helped in the summer! Will definitely try them again this year.

[KittyColdNose]

Last year was my first year gardening and I did loads of research before putting spade to soil. I went down the companion planting route and didn't have too much trouble with wee beasties at all. I will do the same again this year with the addition of rhubarb pesticide. I love experimenting I do

[scorpius]

My chickens usually sort them out

[Two_Sheds]

This is the caterpillar of the Small Cabbage White: it's different to the ones you found