Cabbage White: Characteristics & Control of the Caterpillars

Whether the caterpillar of the pest is poisonous, what development it undergoes and how to fight the cabbage white butterfly, you will learn below.

The cabbage white eats the leaves of white cabbage, cabbage, cauliflower, Kohlrabi and various other types of cabbage that should actually end up on our plates. Despite the aesthetics of the white butterfly, vegetable gardeners want a surefire remedy against the insatiable caterpillars. We have compiled all the important information about the cabbage white butterfly for you, so that nothing stands in the way of effective prevention and control.

After a brief profile of the cabbage white butterfly, this article provides information on the development and toxicity of the white butterfly. We then go into detail about effective preventive measures and ways of combating them with home remedies, chemical and biological agents.

Recognize cabbage white butterfly: wanted poster

In the table below you will find the various stages of development, occurrence and damage of the cabbage white.

taxonomy	family Piridae, genus Pieris
Occurrence	North Africa to Northern Europe, with us from the North German lowlands to the Alps
forage plants	Various cruciferous vegetables (Brassicaceae), which also includes our cultivated cabbage varieties, rarely other plants
butterflies	White to yellowish in color, maximum wingspan 6.5 cm, with black spot on tip of forewings; diurnal, pollinate various wild and garden plants
eggs	Bright yellow, on the underside of the leaves of the forage plants
caterpillars	Green-yellow, with patterns of black spots and speckles; Body has short hairs, at most 4 cm long
damage picture	Start with pitting, severe infestation leads to skeletonization of entire leaves; partly grub in cabbages
Doll	The so-called belt dolls hang freely on trunks or walls

Cabbage White: Poisonous caterpillar?

When eating cabbage plants, the cabbage white caterpillars ingest various substances that humans cannot tolerate in large quantities, such as mustard oil glycosides. If these are split in the course of the caterpillar's metabolic processes, toxic substances such as isothiocyanates are produced. These irritate the mucous membranes and have a negative impact on the production of thyroid hormones. Cabbage white caterpillars contain these isothiocyanates, making them inedible to many predators. They themselves are immune to their effects. The substance is only toxic to humans in much higher concentrations, so touching and even eating the caterpillars in small quantities would be just as harmless as eating cabbage - because eating it also produces various, slightly toxic degradation products in our body.

tipLarge and Small Cabbage White: The Large Cabbage White (Pieris brassicae) and the lesser cabbage white (Pieris rapae) are visually very similar, but show differences in their distribution, food spectrum and feeding behavior. So the caterpillar of Pieris rapae also known as the "heartworm" because it likes to eat its way into the insides of cabbages. In addition to cruciferous plants, the cabbage white also infests leeks, caper, candytuft and rocket. Due to the broader food spectrum, the lesser cabbage white is somewhat more widespread than the greater cabbage white, whose diet is more exclusively based on cabbage plants. However, since the harmful effect and control are largely the same, no distinction is made between the species below.

Cabbage White: Development

In Germany there are two to four generations per year, the first moths fly between April and June, the last in October at the latest. After laying the eggs, it takes about 14 days for the caterpillars to hatch, which then attack the foliage of the host plant. The main damage usually occurs in June and July. Pupation occurs after three to four weeks of feeding. The last generation overwinters in this form.

Prevent cabbage white moth

You don't have to wait until an infestation occurs to protect your plants: some preventive measures will help keep cabbage whites away.

1. plant mixed cultures, instead of cultivating large areas with potential forage crops.
2. Be sure to follow proper crop rotation.
3. Strongly scented plants between the cabbage plants should distract the cabbage white butterfly from the cabbage scent: thyme, mugwort, anise, tansy, sage, peppermint, tomatoes and extracts from these plants should help here.
4. The creation of beneficial insect habitats reduces the pressure of infestation: many songbirds devour the butterflies of the cabbage white and native ones parasitic wasp species parasitize the caterpillars and eggs.
5. Be on the lookout for eggs under the leaves of forage plants as soon as you spot the white butterflies in your garden. In this way, a severe infestation can be prevented by acting early.
6. With a low infestation or small areas, eggs and caterpillars can be collected.
7. The cultures can be covered with nets in good time – i.e. before the moths fly. The mesh size should be a maximum of two millimeters and the nets must not have any holes.

Tip: If the nets were not covered until after the moths had taken flight, the cultures must be regularly checked and collected or treated.

Combat cabbage white moth

You can fight the cabbage white with household remedies, chemical or biological pesticides.

Control cabbage white moth biologically

Biological control of cabbage whites is possible on the one hand with specifically settled beneficial insects, on the other hand with agents based on the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis. Basically, the earlier you start fighting, the less damage will be done to your plants. The caterpillars of the small cabbage white also eat their way into cabbages and from this point on they can no longer be reached by plant protection measures.

A beneficial insect that can be used is the cabbage white parasitic wasp Cotesia glomerata. It parasitizes and kills the free-feeding larvae of the cabbage white. It is quite specialized, the species Pieris brassicae is preferred to all other butterflies and also to the lesser cabbage white. The latter has its own main parasite: the parasitic wasp Cotesia rubecula. Both types are used professionally to control cabbage whites, but are difficult to obtain for private users. However, since they are native to us and are attracted by the smell of the cabbage plants, recommends Here, too, the beneficial design of your garden can be used as a powerful weapon against the Cabbage White.

Another beneficial insect that can be used does not parasitize the larvae, but the eggs of both cabbage white species: namely the parasitic wasps of the genus trichograma. Kits are available with eggs of different species, which then take action against several harmful butterflies. trichograma-Species lay their own eggs inside the butterflies' eggs, and the larvae that hatch from them then feed on the contents.

Tip: Unfortunately, the use of parasitic wasps outdoors is often not efficient. The small braconid wasps migrate, are blown away by strong winds or are eaten by other insects and birds. Greenhouse use, on the other hand, is much more effective.

As a biological agent in the field, insecticides based on Bacillus thuringiensisproven. Permanent forms of the bacterium can be kept for a long time as a water-soluble powder and can be mixed with a little liquid to form a spray mixture. This is simply sprayed onto the cabbage white’s food plants. After rainfall and strong plant growth, the spray coating should be renewed. The effect of these agents is extremely gentle on the beneficial organism: the bacterial spores have to be ingested and unfold toxic potential only in the presence of certain enzymes found in the intestines of the target organisms - and in no other insect gut. Our Plantura Zünslerfrei XenTari® contains exactly the root of Bacillus thuriengiensis, which fights the cabbage white butterfly. The application is very simple.

Application of our Plantura Zünslerfrei XenTaris® against the cabbage white butterfly:

• If you observe caterpillars or damage caused by feeding, you should treat all host plants with the stirred Plantura Zünslerfrei XenTari® moisten – do not omit the inner areas and undersides of the leaves
• Use the product when the outside temperature is at least 15 °C
• With a portion bag from XenTari® you can grow about 33 m with a plant height of 50 cm² treat
• The application is ideally done with a spray bottle and when there is no wind
• Our Plantura Zünslerfrei XenTari® is harmless to humans; However, please note the information on safe use in the package leaflet

Combat cabbage white moth chemically

Various chemical agents are approved for controlling cabbage whites in the home garden. Some use the active ingredient azadirachtin, which can be isolated from the neem tree and is harmful to various insects - most of which serve us as beneficial insects. We assume that no responsible gardener would want to spread any of these toxins in their garden, so we will not go into detail about their use.

Combat the cabbage white butterfly with home remedies

Unfortunately, no home remedies are suitable for saving your cabbage harvest in the event of a serious infestation. For this reason, the preventive application of the above tips at a sufficiently early stage is particularly important. Because moths and caterpillars appear throughout the growing season, you can, in principle, apply these preventative measures throughout the growing season.

The cabbage white butterfly is not the only pest that likes to eat cabbage plants in the garden - the cabbage fly can also seriously affect your cabbage harvest. In our special article you will learn how to do it Identify, prevent and combat cabbage fly can.