What's it look like?
You'll probably notice a pretty white butterfly flitting around the garden this month. Don't be fooled, these are enemies of a great garden. It's the larvae (or caterpillars) of these flitting creatures that chew the leaves of developing plants especially those from the cabbage family.

What it attacks
Cabbage white butterfly will attack any plant in the cabbage family. This includes cabbages, broccoli, brussel sprouts and cauliflower.

What to do before it arrives
Plant out strong smelling herbs like sage, coriander and dill to deter the butterflies. This stops them laying their eggs on the leaves.

The butterflies are quite territorial and won't approach where another has been, so fool them by tying a piece of fishing line over your crop and dangle home made butterflies made from white cardboard covered with contact for rain protection. Don't forget to put a little grey dot on each wing to give it that "authentic" look. This is a great activity to do with the kids and it gets them interested in gardening.

What to do if you already have problems
Always check on the underside of the leaf for little eggs and caterpillars. You will often prevent damage by acting early, before they have a chance to do too much to your plants. Try hosing them off or simply squash them on the leaf. If you leave some "evidence" on the leaf it can deter other butterflies from leaving any unwanted deposits.

You can always do nothing and wait for predators. Last year I squashed a few on the leaf and left them. Within only a couple of weeks I saw lots of predatory wasps preying on unsuspecting caterpillars. After that there was no need to do anything else.

If you cannot live with these critters, then your best organic weapon is DIPEL. This is a biological control that acts on the digestive system of caterpillars. It is totally safe for humans and animals and registered by the organic certification body NASAA (nothing to do with astronauts).