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Is it the end of my Cauliflowers?

trout76trout76 Posts: 28
in Fruit & veg
Despite netting off (Poorly due to what was available during lockdown) The cabbage whites have got in. This is the current state of my crop! Would you pull them out and throw or can I still salvage these? Should I pull them up now and get them blanched and in the freezer? They are covered in caterpillar Poo, but I can just wash that off. First time I’ve ever grown cauliflowers and despite being excited that they’d flowered, I’m not ready to throw the towel in and be beaten yet! 
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  • trout76trout76 Posts: 28
    This is my biggest one  About 10cm diameter and sprinkled with 💩 
  • trout76trout76 Posts: 28
    anyone? Worries about leaving them much longer 🙈
  • BenCottoBenCotto Posts: 4,718
    I would have no concerns about using them. Wash off the debris and then boil when you cook them - that’ll see off anything untoward.

    I have had the same problem with my brassicas. Small cabbage whites just scoff at so called butterfly proof netting. Breathe in and through they go. The netting is quite good for temporarily trapping them in there for maximum egg laying opportunities.

    Next year I shall double up the netting so overlapping mesh should create smaller holes. I know I could use enviro-fleece but I am so precious - I think the white sheet detracts from the aesthetics of the garden. This year I used something similar to deter carrot root fly and every day it jarred.
    Rutland, England
  • tui34tui34 Posts: 3,493
    Hi @BenCotto  I have the same netting and the white butterfly can lay their eggs on the brassica leaves leaning against the net.  As they grow, I increase the height of the "cage".  Whatever happened to Derris Dust?  

    Yes @trout76 I would just wash off the debris and use.  Try not to squash it!! (the debris).  Your caulis look great !
    A good hoeing is worth two waterings.

  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    I use black 4mm mesh (with holes any larger than that, butterflies can and will squeeze through.)  The black 'disappears to the eye' from a relatively short distance.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • bertrand-mabelbertrand-mabel Posts: 2,697
    I agree with all above. Your caulis look great. We can't grow them in our soil as they bolt immediately they start to produce.
  • trout76trout76 Posts: 28
    Thank you all. Im
    feeling more proud of myself now as a first time cauliflower grower! Shucks lol! 
    @BenCotto! Yes, I released a rather fabulous individual, must have had a field day before I noticed it! My daughter now chases them around the patch shouting ‘leave our cauliflowers alone’ much to the amusement of passers by. 

    So, best to get them out now or give them a little longer? Saying that not sure how much of my remaining leaves will be left 😂
  • SkandiSkandi Posts: 1,723
    Cut them now and wash it off. badminton rackets are good fun against cabbage whites.
  • trout76trout76 Posts: 28
    Skandi said:
    Cut them now and wash it off. badminton rackets are good fun against cabbage whites.
    Noted 😂😂
  • trout76trout76 Posts: 28
    Post power wash! Still a poo loaf of poo to remove 🙈
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