A very hungry caterpillar...
Posted: Sat Jul 16, 2005 6:09 pm
... or rather, a million hungry caterpillars :sign10: 
:sign10: ...
OK, I didn't count them, but there are LOTS! And they are VERY HUNGRY! And this is me
!
This evening I discovered that little green caterpillars had stripped all the leaves off a small red currant bush, still in pot and ready to be planted this autumn. And they were now busy on the next plant, a Josta berry. My helpful neighbour told me that the same type of beastie had also stripped his gooseberries in the past - which is why he's given up growing anything like that in his garden.
What the heck are they, and what can I do about them (apart from going round all my bushes and picking them off one by one - that would be even more difficult than hunting slugs, as they are green on green
)?!
I have been round with my spray bottle and some neem extract with citronella. No idea whether that'll deter the buggers, but my garden now smells like a citrus orchard. Nice!
So, if anbody can come up with a good idea how to get rid of them, short of the heavy chemical artillery, I'd be grateful.
Ina
:sign10: ...OK, I didn't count them, but there are LOTS! And they are VERY HUNGRY! And this is me
!This evening I discovered that little green caterpillars had stripped all the leaves off a small red currant bush, still in pot and ready to be planted this autumn. And they were now busy on the next plant, a Josta berry. My helpful neighbour told me that the same type of beastie had also stripped his gooseberries in the past - which is why he's given up growing anything like that in his garden.
What the heck are they, and what can I do about them (apart from going round all my bushes and picking them off one by one - that would be even more difficult than hunting slugs, as they are green on green
)?!I have been round with my spray bottle and some neem extract with citronella. No idea whether that'll deter the buggers, but my garden now smells like a citrus orchard. Nice!
So, if anbody can come up with a good idea how to get rid of them, short of the heavy chemical artillery, I'd be grateful.
Ina
Little beasties are the worst as there are so many of them (like my flea beetles 
).
!!!) - blue, great and coal, plus all sorts of other birds, it's amazing that I've still got these beasts in such numbers. The only good thing about it is that the bushes are still in their first year and not really fruiting anyway. So as long as they survive the season, I have another chance next year...
The only one I know of that age is, I think, too squeamish for this job. Parents a bit too overprotective - don't touch that, it's yuk, don't get yourself dirty... Where's the fun in playing if you can't muck around?