Black with yellow stripe Caterpillar's How to kill them

Rob Roy

Well-Known Member
Looks like a moth caterpillar.

Manually remove them. They are reincarnated politicians looking to tax your plants foliage and must be destroyed.
 

Roger A. Shrubber

Well-Known Member
as much as Rob and i disagree about 99.9% of life, that's pretty good advice.
anything that will kill caterpillars is not going to be good to put on your plant in flower.
bacillus thurgiensis kurstaki (BTK) isn't too bad as things go, it's a bacteria that is supposed to be harmless to humans. if there are too many to pick off, i'd try it.
i've heard that wrapping a piece of burlap around the stalk of the plant will lure them in when the lights come on. they want to hide from the light, which makes it easier to isolate and remove them. haven't tried it, but it would be quick and easy, if it works.
 

Pat262

Member
Ive done a few things, first i defoliated a bit so its easier to find them, I put plastic down covered with diatomaceous earth so when they fall they have to crawl in that, and third i hunt for them and pick them off as i see them. I found if i shake the plants i can hear what falls out of the plant on the plastic and find the critters a bit easier. I did test tobacco, habanero,dash of dawn and garlic spray on them, it did not seem to bother them or dieter them from going to the plants. The iso alcohol mix does kill them but cant spray that on the plants this far in. Better prep next time, im seeing that an air tight room with air filters and exhaust fans is truly the way to go if you want clean bug free medicine. Good news is i think im getting them as i only found 2 in the last week. Thanks for the advice.
 

Pat262

Member
Looks like the tobacco, habanero,dash of dawn and garlic spray did work, 2 weeks after the spray never found a bad bug in the place. The spray did stun them for about a week. Id recommend a good rinse off a day or two after spraying to prevent possible mold and recovery. No noticeable flavor or taste at the end either. And thanks for the advice by Rob and Roger, it sucks but sometimes you have to just get in there and pull the obvious bugs off too.
 
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