Cabbage Worms and Moths?

Yesterday my venture in the garden was scoping out pests; one in particular. The cabbage worm or moth loves to eat and lay eggs on:

Brussels sprouts
Collards
Kale
Kohlrabi
Cauliflower
Turnips
Radishes
Mustard Greens
Rutabaga

Broccoli

If any of these plants are developing holes in the leaves, it's very possible that the cabbage worm has entered the garden. Fortunately we've had some huge downpours, and I hear this helps prevent the cabbage worm. This year I haven't seen them too much, but last year I had to get rid of these pests in the garden.

How to identify:

If your plant is getting holes in it, that can be an indicator. Another indicator are when you look under the leaf you might seen little green droppings or white eggs.

Another big sign that you potentially have a problem is if you see the green cabbage worm, or the moth that it turns into. The moth is what lays it's eggs on the plant.

How to get rid of these pests:

The best way of getting rid of them is to hand pick them and get rid of them. You just take any cabbage worms/eggs you see and pick them off the plant. This is a good job for the kids. If you are like me you could also treat with insecticides that you might find at a garden store. They have powders you can brush on, or sprays (some organic, some not).

I've also read another great organic repellent is a hot pepper spray. I've never tried that, but if cabbage worms come to grace their prescence this year I'm going to give it a try. You can make the spray by chopping or grinding hot peppers into fine particles. You then mix 1/2 cup of the grounded peppers with 1 pint of water and then strain out the particles to form a clear solution. You should spray the plants twice, 2 or 3 days apart. Just make sure the spray makes contact with the cabbageworm.