Thursday 22 May 2014

Beating the Butterflies

You know I found Butterfly eggs on one of my Brussels Sprout plants the other day? Well, I decided that the time had come to prevent any further infestations by covering the bed with anti-butterfly netting. I have seen a few Small White butterflies around, but they are not yet in plague proportions like they were last Summer, though I expect they will come in greater numbers very soon.

Before netting the raised bed, I gave each plant a stout stake, to which I will attach them as they grow bigger. At each corner of the bed, and half-way along the long sides I hammered in more stakes, this time longer than the plant-support ones. These are for supporting the netting. In theory the net, which is made of knitted polythene, is light enough to be supported by the plants themselves. However, I don't like that idea,  because I feel it would be bound to cause them some stress or damage, and of course it would mean that Butterflies could lay their eggs through the netting. I have therefore draped the net over the six taller stakes, each one of which is topped with an empty Elmlea pot to stop the net snagging on the rough wood or metal.


I didn't have enough long wooden stakes, so I used some I made from the arms of an old rotary washing-line. They work very well, and in fact they are easier to hammer in, since they are slimmer than the chunky wooden ones.

Close-up of the stakes topped with plastic pots

The mesh of this net has a diameter of about 5mm, which will stop Butterflies getting in, but I think it would also deter all but the most determined bees as well. Fortunately the Brussels Sprouts don't require the services of bees...


You will notice that I have weighted-down the edges of the net with bricks. Those bricks are invaluable. I don't know how I would manage without them!



14 comments:

  1. What a good idea. We usually build a cage with horizontal poles attached to the top of the vertical ones, this would save so much time.

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  2. These are the bane of my garden existence! my brassicas get ravaged by caterpillars and this spring I lost most of my red currants and half of the gooseberries to them! Yesterday I found them chewing my grapes and even blackberry bush is not immune. :(

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  3. Can I say that the upside down cups on top of the poles are sheer genius?

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    1. It's a very effective technique, but I can't claim to have invented it. I have seen it being used ever since plastic yoghurt pots came in!

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  4. Very sensible Mark just goes to show the lengths we veg growers have to go to to protect our crops a never ending battle, handy that you can just pop out the back door to your plot instead of visiting a allotment

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  5. I lost all my brasica's last year due to gaps left in the net, I sewed them up with wool. my net is what you see around scafffolding. It is over two raised beds and tall enough ffor me to work in. seeing your has me planning same for a small bed I have just planted up.(excuse my mucky nails)

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  6. We net our brassicas as soon as we plant them as the netting doubles up as protection from the dastardly wood pigeons.

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  7. I always put a row cover over mine, but I like your net. It is much prettier. I don't think it would keep the root maggots out which otherwise take down most of the plants. So I'm stuck with what I have.

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  8. I couldn't find any netting at all at the weekend, I am improvising with some thin fleece until I get them in the ground.

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  9. You've got the right idea netting. I've found a few tiny caterpillars on plants already. I really need to net too.

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  10. Had to smile at this after doing my own netting yesterday.This year I bought some finer mesh pond netting to stop the CWBs ,but the water pipe hoops/ canes with plastic bottles on top combo were just too long for the width of the netting and I ripped some small holes in the bottom when securing it!
    Very frustrating as I've just come back from Madeira where they don't net their brassica and nothing seems to attack it.Totally unblemished leaves.

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  11. I am very interested in understanding if you protection will have success against butterflies that are annoying you

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  12. My garden always sports a healthy population of bricks migrating around doing their work. I also have little grey paving stones left over from a project and my husband couldn't understand why I went back to the store and bought three more so I would have a complete set of 8!

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  13. A wise precaution there's nothing worse than having your crop decimated by caterpillars. I need to plant mine out I just need to build the new raised bed first!

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