Broccoli being eaten

[Bezzer34]

Can anyone suggest what might be eating the broccoli ? It has been under nets since it was planted.

[rustylady]

First picture looks like pigeon damage - do your nets completely cover the plants?

Second picture I would say baby caterpillars.

[Bezzer34]

Yes they cover the crop completely . I couldn't find any caterpillars . How should I treat it ?
Many thanks for the help its my first year of having an allotment and its a steep learning curve.

[rustylady]

Slugs or more likely snails then. Get some blue pellets.

[Bezzer34]

Ok will do , many thanks .

[kathyd]

Some of my brassicas looked just like that when I checked yesterday Bezzer, and mine are under netting too. BUT I did find caterpillars on some of them, although they'd moved off the mangled ones onto fresh pastures by the time I looked. The butterflies lay their eggs through the netting if the leaves touch it, which mine do in places. Also I'm wondering if some of my smaller plants had eggs on them already when I planted them out, because it was the smaller / more recently planted ones which had been eaten, and they don't touch the netting yet - something else I need to check for in future.

[Two_Sheds]

Get some blue pellets.

Organic ones (ferric phosphate, not metaldehyde)

"Unlike those based on metaldehyde, they ...pose no threat to people, pets or wildlife"
Slug pellets - March - 2011 - Which? News

Yes they cost more, so use half as many

Also try and do a night-time patrol with a tub of salt: you'll see 100s of molluscs munching your plants