I don't know if it's the right thing to do, but if a caterpillar is nibbling something that matters to me ,I move it to something that doesn't - unless it's sawfly larvae. Then they're chucked in the middle of the lawn, complete with leaf for the birds to eat. If the birds don't get them, they can eat the grass and save me a job or die.
Yuk! I would still cut off the leaves complete with bugs and leave them on the path or at least away from anything edible. If the birds don't get them, they'll die anyway.
It’s normal and part of nature ... if you’re really worried about your plants you can do as @B3 suggests ... I’d probably be more interested in watching to see what’s going to happen and what they turn into.
You could of course remove some and leave some .., but most of those caterpillars will be gathered by birds to take back to feed their nestlings ... that’s how spring happens. Remove the caterpillars and nestlings go hungry.
If you watch Springwatch on TV you’ll see how many caterpillars it takes to rear a family.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Yes, it is perfectly normal. The moth or butterfly lays thousands of eggs in the expectation that very few caterpillars* will make it through to adulthood. The rest provide food for birds etc and support the wonderful diversity of life that occurs in our gardens. Were all the caterpillars to survive we’d be seeing huge swarms of butterflies. Were all the caterpillars to be destroyed by us then the bird numbers would plummet.
When we start meddling with this chain there are environmental consequences so, wherever possible, leave nature alone. Of course you might want to remove the caterpillars if they were decimating your carefully nurtured brassicas or prized flowers but otherwise live with nature and don’t adversely interfere.
* worms are the long brown wiggly, glistening things that live in the soil.
This morning I've been sitting here watching pairs of bluetits and greenfinches all over the plants and shrubs in our garden, taking tiny spiders, caterpillars and aphids back to feed their newly hatched babies.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
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I would still cut off the leaves complete with bugs and leave them on the path or at least away from anything edible. If the birds don't get them, they'll die anyway.
and what they turn into.
Remove the caterpillars and nestlings go hungry.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Yes, it is perfectly normal. The moth or butterfly lays thousands of eggs in the expectation that very few caterpillars* will make it through to adulthood. The rest provide food for birds etc and support the wonderful diversity of life that occurs in our gardens. Were all the caterpillars to survive we’d be seeing huge swarms of butterflies. Were all the caterpillars to be destroyed by us then the bird numbers would plummet.
When we start meddling with this chain there are environmental consequences so, wherever possible, leave nature alone. Of course you might want to remove the caterpillars if they were decimating your carefully nurtured brassicas or prized flowers but otherwise live with nature and don’t adversely interfere.
* worms are the long brown wiggly, glistening things that live in the soil.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.