Box caterpillar, box caterpillar, and box caterpillar. Oh, and a bit more box caterpillar. π
Hello friends!
This week has been distinctly THEMED. I noticed the signs of box caterpillar at the weekend and have been steadily dealing with them all week, so below is my box caterpillar 101, sent with love from me to you.
Here are my five minute forays this week:
Monday: More than five minutes today, and I swoop to my potting bench (if you can call it that) and prick out some of the marigolds I sowed with my eldest a while ago. I normally like to sow in modules but mine have finally given up the ghost and I don't want to buy any more plastic, so these were sown en masse in large-ish plastic pots. We put some inside to germinate and some outside. The ones outside germinated later but have now caught up. I love the visual trick that a small individual pot plays on you when you plonk a seedling into it. The seedling suddenly expands - seems altogether double its previous size. This actually becomes reality after a couple of days, once a seedling or plug has settled into its new pot. They fatten up fast.
I also sow three sets of seeds outside, in some bits of bare ground. I'm not expecting much from these, as I didn't prepare the soil very well, but I do it anyway, because I feel like it. I sow xxx, xxx and xxx, along with some chives to edge the long skinny flowerbeds where my new hedge lurks. I've decided to edge the rest of the flowerbeds with alpine strawberries, for no other reason than that these plants seem to enjoy growing in my garden (and they taste good).
There is also some caterpillar murder to report...more of which below.
Tuesday
I take my pelargonium cuttings which I made last year, and transfer them from their gritty, nutrient-free compost into something nice and beefy in a much larger pot. I've been ridiculously lax with these poor things and they could now be twice the size they are, had I paid the slightest bit of attention to them. I've decided they'll be house plants and put them in individual, pretty terracotta pots. God knows where I will put them as every surface of my house is covered in a thin layer of lego. But one can dream.
More caterpillar murder happened...more of which below.
Wednesday:
I mow the lawn. I know I said I was going to let some of it grow. I just haven't decided which bits yet, and it's a sunny day, so I mow the whole lot, resolving to make a decision on this pronto. I'm so inspired by rainbow, 'multi-racial' lawns, and I refuse to let mine be an example of grass supremacy any more. I want daisies, and bulbs, and basically ALL OF THE THINGS. Eldest tells me she actually doesn't like the trees because she can't play certain games. I tell her to go to the park.
More caterpillar murder...more fo which below
Thursday:
I can't bear to check the box balls again for more disgusting caterpillars. I have my head firmly in the sand. That said though, the picking has worked, and the damage is minimal...I just don't want to do it every day. I take delivery of two moth traps, and I hang them up. I got them from here. They look awful but at this point I care not.
They work by attracting the male moths with the help of a pheromone lure. The idea is that if there are no males, then no breeding can happen, which is great, because this beast has multiple breeding cycles in a season, but it doesn't deal with the already-pupated suckers. For them, see below. I feed a couple of balls with seaweed extract for good measure, to keep them fighting fit
Friday: It rains all day. A friend comes for lunch, and then seven children descend for a playdate. Lots of macaroni cheese. No gardening.
Box Caterpillar: This much I know
Sorry if this doesn't apply to you, but it's all I've been doing this week, so it would be a bit fake to talk about anything else.
Cydalima perspectalis is the box tree caterpillar and if you donβt already have it, very sorry, but itβs coming soon to a box ball near you. It lays pale yellow eggs on the underside of the leaves, which hatch green and yellow caterpillars with black heads.
These will munch away, leaving only crispy brown skeletons of leaves, and making you both angry and sad. It is now widespread in the UK, as manifold pale beige, crispy box plants will attest.
Now of course, there are loads of sprays out there which will nuke the critters, including all other beneficial insects. If thatβs not something you want to contribute to then there are other solutions. Firstly, hand-removal. Itβs time-consuming and gross, as you may have seen on my stories, but effective if you do it regularly, remembering that this moth has more than one life cycle every year, and that the caterpillars over-winter on the plant. Next is the nematode route, (Nemasys fruit and vegetable protection, Β£30 for a three month supply) is effective as long as you follow the instructions religiously.
I ordered something called Topbuxus Xentari which claims to kill caterpillars but not bees (indeed bee-keepers use it to control moths). I cannot vouch for it yet though, as I only received it on Thursday and have been waiting for a break in the rain to apply it.
Ideally the temperature needs to be above 15 degrees and at the time of writing I have just sprayed each ball, and it's only 8 degrees, so I'm hoping the weather will get warmer and I will re-apply. I do have evidence that it works, however, from some very accomplished gardeners who say that they sprayed it at the beginning of the season and haven't seen a single caterpillar. Add to this a couple of moth traps, (see above) and then you have an effective strategy, as well as an indicator of any moths in the area (and therefore trouble ahead).
Finally, remember that this pest isnβt going away any time soon, so if you want box the youβll have to commit to themβ¦big time. Personally, Iβm done with feeling sad, so I will be phasing out my box and replacing them with yew, pittosporum tobiraβnanumβ, sarcococca confusa or lonicera nitida, all of which respond well to clipping, and none of which will (hopefully) break my heart.
All the good things, always
x Laetitia
PS you can hear episode three of The Virgin Gardener Podcast here where we chat about vine weevils and pelargoniums. Do give it a listen and let me know what you think!
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Daily posts on instagram
You can find my books here and here (Sweet Peas for Summer is a bargain right now at only Β£2.99!)
Do you Pinterest? Is that even a verb? Anyway, I love it and you can find me here
I'm also on Twitter if you tweet