How to get rid of green caterpillars?

1. Natural caterpillar insecticide

As you know, on 10-Trucs we always favor natural tips and home remedies. So how about making your own natural caterpillar insecticide?

Here are the ingredients and steps needed to make this caterpillar insecticide:

• Boil 4 liters of water in a large saucepan.
• Then add 200 gr of fresh garlic to boiling water.
• Let the solution steep for 30 minutes, remove from the heat and allow to cool.
• Pour into a spray bottle and spray the caterpillars, plants and other places where the caterpillars are.

You can add garlic juice to the insecticide just before using it against caterpillars for even more effectiveness. You can also use this ladybug repellent in spring and fall.

2. White vinegar against caterpillars

A natural product that you can use to get rid of caterpillars naturally in the garden and even around the house is white vinegar.

Here is how to use white vinegar to protect your garden and plants from caterpillars:

1. Pour white vinegar and water in equal quantities into a bottle.
2. Mix the solution well and spray the repellent directly on the plants attacked by the caterpillars.
3. Repeat the process every day until you are completely rid of the caterpillars.

You can also use this home remedy for slugs, aphids and even gnats on your plants.

If you grow cabbage in the vegetable garden you may have already had a problem with a kind of caterpillar… This is the cabbage butterfly.

Unfortunately, this caterpillar loves to eat cabbage leaves. If you don’t react quickly enough, these caterpillars could do serious damage to your cabbages and your vegetable garden.

Prepare a natural insecticide to protect cabbages from caterpillars:

You can spray cabbages and caterpillars with pyrethrum or tansy infusions. I suggest you try tansy tea first to kill and repel cabbage leaf caterpillars.

You can also spray this natural treatment in prevention and therefore to prevent seeing your cabbages invaded by cabbageworm!

Why not a biological insecticide?

If you prefer, here is a biological insecticide precisely effective against the cabbage butterfly as well as against the box tree moth and the pine processionary:

4. Green caterpillars that eat the leaves… What to do?

Last summer I found dozens and dozens of little green caterpillars that loved the leaves of my plants and shrubs.

So if you too have this problem of green caterpillars eating leaves, here are some tips to get rid of them.

• Cut small branches and leaves: the first thing to do if you see several green caterpillars eating the leaves of plants is to take a pruner and cut off the end of the affected branch. Be careful not to drop the caterpillars on the ground, because they will immediately start eating the leaves again.
• Manually remove caterpillars from plants: If there are only a few caterpillars large enough to catch then put on gloves and manually pull them off the plants. Take care to place the caterpillars in an airtight bag before disposing of them in the trash.
• Spray repellent on leaves and plants: Finally, once the caterpillars have been removed from your plants, spray a little soapy water to prevent other caterpillars from eating the leaves.

5. Natural apple tree treatment against caterpillars

The caterpillar of a certain butterfly can cause many problems for your apple and pear trees. Although certain natural products such as white vinegar can help protect your apple trees, I recommend a bacillus-based treatment instead.

Bacillus is a bacteria that is deadly to caterpillars that attack apple and pear trees. A spraying of this insecticide at dusk and a few times during the spring and summer is sufficient to kill these caterpillars and treat these apple trees.

A sticky caterpillar trap:

Another solution to kill caterpillars is to add a sticky trap to the trunks of problematic apple trees. This type of sticky trap is very effective in stopping caterpillars and killing them before they do too much damage.

Attract birds to protect apple trees:

Another natural solution to get rid of caterpillars attacking apple trees is to attract birds. Birds love caterpillars and you will protect your fruit trees from these invaders.

6. Natural treatment for box tree moth

Boxwood is a shrub that we really like here at home. Last summer we unfortunately saw small caterpillars on the stems and leaves of our box trees.

Bacillus thurengiensis, a natural treatment against the box tree caterpillar!

The box tree moth is very common, but fortunately there is a natural treatment based on Bacillus thurengiensis. It is indeed a natural insecticide that is very effective in eliminating caterpillars that attack boxwood leaves.

Here is one such box tree moth product: Just mix this product with water and then spray it on the box trees to quickly kill all the Lepidoptera larvae (caterpillars).

7. Natural remedy for caterpillars with elderberry

Do you have an elderberry plant at home in your garden or flower bed? Did you know that elderberry can be very effective against green caterpillars and black caterpillars?

Indeed, regardless of the type and size of caterpillars to be eliminated, here is a natural recipe that is really very effective and fast-acting:

1. Soak 1kg of elderberry leaves in 10 liters of water for 24 to 36 hours.
2. Then boil the mixture for about thirty minutes, remove from the heat and let cool.
3. Filter the mixture and spray the plants and areas to be treated with this decoction to kill the larvae and caterpillars.

You can use this elderberry recipe to get rid of caterpillars outside, but also in the house, in your plants for example.

8. Soapy water against caterpillars

Of course, if you see a few caterpillars on plants, in the vegetable garden or elsewhere, soapy water may do just fine.

A simple and quick repellent to make:

• Mix 1/3 liquid dish soap in water.
• Spray the soapy water on the caterpillars, leaves and plants to be treated.
• Repeat several times to prevent the caterpillars from coming back.

You can also add a little white vinegar to the mixture to make an even more effective repellent against green caterpillars, but also against aphids on plants.

9. Garlic Green Caterpillar Remedy

Garlic is another natural ingredient that you can use to eliminate caterpillars and other pests from the leaves of your plants, flowers, and shrubs.

Here is how to prepare this anti-caterpillar remedy:

1. Soak 100-150g minced garlic in a large saucepan for 1-2 days.
2. Then boil the solution for 20 to 30 minutes covered.
3. Remove from heat, allow to cool, strain the mixture and pour into a (spray) bottle.

Spray all of the leaves and stems of plants and vegetable seedlings to get rid of caterpillars and other pests naturally.

10. Other homemade caterpillar tips and tricks

Finally, here are some other handy tips and tricks you can use at home to eliminate and kill leaf-eating caterpillars that attack your plants and vegetables.

• Use coffee grounds: coffee grounds are a natural repellent against caterpillars, slugs and several other insects present in the vegetable garden and flower beds. Simply scatter coffee grounds at the base of your plants, vegetables and flowers to keep them away.
• Spray some beer: Open your refrigerator and find an old bottle of beer that you forgot. Then spray some beer on the caterpillars and leaves of your plants to kill them.