Let's talk bugs...

In looking over the spreadsheet I posted I now remember that I had quite a time with caterpillars last fall. Last year was kind of unusual for us weather wise around here. It was very dry throughout the summer, which in itself is not all that unusual. However, when we did start getting some rain it was pretty late in the year. Additionally, we had a prolonged "indian summer", which is the inevitable late season warm spell that generally punctuates the transition between summer and fall around here. With the combination of the two the critters seemed to think that spring was early and my nice leafy greens were one of the few games in town.

So, how the neck do you keep the caterpillars from ravaging your crops without dumping a bunch of toxic crap into your system?

One of the most effective controls I have found is Neem oil. Neem is a plant that is known for its antibacterial properties and is widely used in some parts of the world as an herbal remedy. The bugs, however, find the oil of this particular plant to be distasteful. I purchased a small bottle of Neem oil at my local organic gardening store. Every few days I would put about a cap full in a small spray bottle with a bit of liquid soap as an emulsifier and gave it a good shake. I would then spray the leaves of the plants.

It doesn't kill the caterpillars, it just makes the plants distasteful to them so they go elsewhere for food. It  was pretty darned effective as well as environmentally friendly.