Organic Insecticides | Organic Pesticides | EcoSMART Bug Spray

How to Identify a Cabbage Looper and Moth

July 17th, 2009 Posted in Ornamental & Lawn Pests

Cabbage loopers belong to a small family of insects that are not as cute as their names.

Well at least a gardener wouldn’t think so.

As larvae or moths, these pests pack the potential to damage your garden vegetables. Dealing with cabbage loopers can be tricky since you don’t want to spray your cabbage, broccoli, peppers or tomatoes with pesticides that are poisonous to the larvae and you.

Cabbage loopers are commonly found in North America. The larvae eat large holes in the leaves of plants, and gardeners know that culprits by the sticky fecal material they leave behind.

For more about cabbage looper larvae and moths:

• Cabbage Looper – The Name
• Cabbage Looper Larvae
• Cabbage Looper Moth

Cabbage Looper – The Name

The cabbage looper, scientifically named Trichoplusia ni, is called a “looper” because of its characteristic looping movement. Cabbage loopers are not in the inchworm family, but they travel with the same technique of curling their backsides up and straightening out.

Cabbage Looper Larvae

The light green larvae are identifiable by their lightly colored stripes. They usually grow to be 1.25 inches.

Of their approximately two- to four-week life cycle, cabbage loopers spend between 18 to 25 days developing from an egg to a larva to a pupa to an adult.

Cabbage Looper Moth

As an adult, the cabbage looper moth shows off a 1-inch wingspan. The moths have dark brown fore-wings with grayish tones and lighter colored hind-wings that aren’t visible when the moth lands.

They lay pinhead-sized greenish eggs are usually affixed to the undersides of leaves. The moths lay these eggs singly, but sometimes there are small clusters. The eggs hatch in two to five days.

There are generally one to three generations of cabbage loopers born in the summer months.

Though cabbage loopers have many natural predators, including animals, insects and disease, farmers often find that they need help removing the larvae from their crops.

EcoSMART has organic pest control products that are so safe that they can be used on the same day as the harvest.

Cabbage loopers stay outside where they can feed on foliage, so they won’t invade your home. So for these unwelcome guests, it’s a good idea to use the garden insect killer spray for eggs and larvae.

The moths can be trickier to subdue, but EcoSMART’s flying insect killer can help. The spray to kill bugs will not hurt your plants because it isn’t made with harmful toxins.

If you have had an experience with cabbage loopers, feel free to comment and share your story for a chance to win a free can of EcoSMART pest control spray.

Estelle Tran