help i'm new to gardening

Discussion in 'General Gardening Discussion' started by blyngo, Oct 8, 2010.

  1. blyngo

    blyngo Apprentice Gardener

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    Hope someone can help me, i have just started growing veg this year and have had success with most things. However i have had lots of trouble with cabbage whitefly on my cabbages and cauliflower. Have finally got a few nice cauliflowers ready to eat. I picked my first tonight and cooked it for dinner, all was great untill I found a couple of cooked grubs yuk!!.
    I did rinse the cauliflower before cooking, is there a specific way of making sure grubs are gone before cooking please.
     
  2. Loofah

    Loofah Admin Staff Member

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    Yep, stick a net over them while they're growing! It prevent the butterflies laying their eggs in the first place.

    More advice in the 'Edible Gardening' section...
     
  3. Kristen

    Kristen Under gardener

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    Netting needs to be small to keep cabbage white butterflies out. Scaffolder's Debris netting is ideal (and a good price).

    We soak ours in salty water, before cooking, to get the bugs out
     
  4. blyngo

    blyngo Apprentice Gardener

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    Thanks for the help, I did cover with netting, but in the beginning there was a couple of gaps and they still got in. Thank you for that tip Kristen, i will soak in salt water next time.
     
  5. Kristen

    Kristen Under gardener

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    "I did cover with netting"

    Netting needs to be no bigger than 7mm mesh, Cabbage White Butterflies can get through standard 10mm mesh :( but, yeah, you need to prevent gaps too :)
     
  6. daitheplant

    daitheplant Total Gardener

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    I find Enviromesh is about the best thing for plant protection.:gnthb:
     
  7. JWK

    JWK Gardener Staff Member

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    Give your veg a soak in salted water for at least 15 minutes, with caulis it's best to cut it up into smaller florets so the bugs can't hide :thumb:
     
  8. blyngo

    blyngo Apprentice Gardener

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    Thank you everyone for advice.
     
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