Budworms - small caterpillars - A big Issue for Outdoor Growers

[Lester Freeman]

Hey all, my first grow (outdoors), and first harvest was impacted by a massive infestation of these budworm things that burrowed into the bud and stems, and laid eggs everywhere, and also induced mold. It was a lot of work to salvage the crop, and eradicate them.

Now that this is my second time around, I have been starting to use SNS-209 ( Systemic Insecticide ), I was wondering if anybody has encountered this type of budworm problem, and what is your opinion on whether the SNS-209 will work for this or not.

I have read up, and seen that a lot of people like to drench their plants with BT caterpillar spray, and I am debating on whether or not to stock up on some of that. Because I am near the coast, it is often very humid ( too humid ), and I am apprehensive about spraying any kind of moisture onto my plants because of the possibility of fungus.

I hope that the SNS-209 completely fixes this problem, because it is a major major heartbreak to find them ruining the precious buds that we have been nurturing.

The way she goes...

 

[trichomes]

I've read that a plant (several herbs/flowers) placed near your plant, will "bait" the moths to the more desirable plant. Pray that all moths will prefer your bait-plant. I have moth/inchworms (not borers) problems here in Ventura, the moths (white &/or brown) lay single eggs all over buds/leaves. FIND & REMOVE the eggs with pressured spray, or shake stems, or visual inspections, squeeze to kill. (I posted an egg on my bud, in my profile) I read vaseline around the stump will stop the inchworms (if they originate in the soil). My inchworms hatch on the plant. Find 'em aqnd kill them. Cover plant at night to keep moths away is an option too. I heard BT repellent or neem oil works best. I make my own organic spray from peppers, garlic, soap, tobacco juice & veg.oil, they (worms) seem to hate the taste, but it won't stop the moths from laying eggs, constantly. I'll try the "more desirable" plant next time, hope the moths will choose the new plant that will be close to my girl. gd luck, lemme know what u find/think.

 

[hopheadfred59]

I live in Lake county Ca. we don't have the bud worm up here. But down in the valley they do. i went down to help a friend harvest a couple years ago and met the worm or catipiller. they ruined so much of my friend's crop it was very sad. i told my friend about sm-90. he's used it for the last two seasons and has had no more bud worms. sm-90 is non toxic citrus based, it kill's bug's and if you live close to the coast you'll be glad to here it kill's mildew. you need to start using it right from the beging. one quart to one gallon of warter in a yard sprayer. spray once aweek throught out grow.no bugs no mildew. it turns hairs orange but thats does not hurt anything. bud's still fill out and form. around 60 dollars a gallon. well worth it.

 

[Lester Freeman]

Thank you for your input buddy, duly noted.

 

[rtoledo]

Lester I know it's been 2 years, since this post , can you tell me if you used this sm 90 and if it's working for you ? last crop the dry white powdery fungus hit me hard, then this crop for my wife's medical issues has been hit hard by these caterpillars that drill into the seeds and the buds all turn brown and fall off.

 

[Lester Freeman]

Hi rtoledo, let me first tell you that, the only best and ultimate way to make sure your crops are safe is to do manual inspections of the plants themselves. Look for signs of caterpillar activity (holes on the fan leaves, signs of brown fecal matter, as well as slime trails that glimmer in the sun). They often are inside the inner crannies of the buds, so you have to open the colas open a bit to look inside and get them out if they are in there. For caterpillars and bud worms, it is advised to use Bt caterpillar killer (either in liquid or granular form) as a precaution. Also, ideally, a netting should be surrounding the plants making it harder for the moths to get in. It is the moths that come out at night that you are worried about. Although, green loopers can be a real problem because they blend into the plants (green on green).

As far as SNS-209 goes, it's a good precautionary measure, but like I said, the best way to control them is through multiple lines of defense. Spinosad may also be used instead of Bt.

Yeah, sounds like you're catching them when it's too late, when the tops fall off they are already burrowed in. Next time, you need to make sure to inspect the plants on a daily basis looking for them. It's when things go out of control with no inspections that the most crop is lost. Daily inspections are the only way, I use an ice-pick or tweezers to remove them without destroying the bud. You also hope they are not the ferocious flesh colored ones, because their slime actually causes gray mold, so there's a lot of different factors here, including humidity. The high humidity will promote these conditions.


As far as the powder mold goes, I would recommend SNS-244 fungicide as a precaution (but don't spray the flowers directly), aside that you just have to hope for dry conditions (which even then might not be enough). The worst case scenario means you should wash your entire crop after harvest in order to remove the white powder mold. We just hope things like this don't happen.

If you need any more advice on specific questions, please feel free to ask and post away!

 

[rtoledo]

Hi rtoledo, let me first tell you that, the only best and ultimate way to make sure your crops are safe is to do manual inspections of the plants themselves. Look for signs of caterpillar activity (holes on the fan leaves, signs of brown fecal matter, as well as slime trails that glimmer in the sun). They often are inside the inner crannies of the buds, so you have to open the colas open a bit to look inside and get them out if they are in there. For caterpillars and bud worms, it is advised to use Bt caterpillar killer (either in liquid or granular form) as a precaution. Also, ideally, a netting should be surrounding the plants making it harder for the moths to get in. It is the moths that come out at night that you are worried about. Although, green loopers can be a real problem because they blend into the plants (green on green).

As far as SNS-209 goes, it's a good precautionary measure, but like I said, the best way to control them is through multiple lines of defense. Spinosad may also be used instead of Bt.

Yeah, sounds like you're catching them when it's too late, when the tops fall off they are already burrowed in. Next time, you need to make sure to inspect the plants on a daily basis looking for them. It's when things go out of control with no inspections that the most crop is lost. Daily inspections are the only way, I use an ice-pick or tweezers to remove them without destroying the bud. You also hope they are not the ferocious flesh colored ones, because their slime actually causes gray mold, so there's a lot of different factors here, including humidity. The high humidity will promote these conditions.


As far as the powder mold goes, I would recommend SNS-244 fungicide as a precaution (but don't spray the flowers directly), aside that you just have to hope for dry conditions (which even then might not be enough). The worst case scenario means you should wash your entire crop after harvest in order to remove the white powder mold. We just hope things like this don't happen.

If you need any more advice on specific questions, please feel free to ask and post away!

Thanks for the fast reply, yes it's too late for these. I just spent the morning reading tons of posts and making notes.
I will be buying some BT as in the more concentrated type, and a few others like the ones you mentioned, for the next 12 plants I have in veg in the house.

I came across a post that I liked a lot for later in the year or next season. Mosquito netting would keep a lot of these moths from doing their deed, and even help to cut down some of the super hot sunlight here in the LA area. man they are just melting away. leaves curling up on me. next season I will go back to above ground growing containers too. in the soil does not seem to add any benefits I can see so far. (I dig a 3 foot hole by 3 feet diameter and use a mixture of coco and other soils (my soil sucks, only good for making cement)

thanks again

 

[Gitane]

Same issue in coastal SoCal with the bugs and mold. Bought mosquito netting built a simple hoop house to house them once they start flowering. Completely eliminated the problem.