Common crops affected
- Cabbage
- Lettuce
- Broccoli
- Tomato
What is it?
The cabbage looper is the larva of a night-flying moth. It moves in a characteristic looping motion and feeds voraciously on foliage, then on heads and growing points, fouling produce with frass.
How to identify it
- Green caterpillars with thin white side stripes that loop (arch) as they crawl.
- Large, irregular holes in leaves, progressing into heads and growing points.
- Dark green frass pellets in the canopy and heads.
- Pale, mottled night-flying moths and ragged feeding patches in the crop.
Life cycle & spread
Multiple overlapping generations per season; moths lay single eggs on leaf undersides, and larvae develop over 2-4 weeks before pupating in the canopy.
Conditions that favour it
Warm weather and lush, well-watered crops favour rapid build-up; continuous vegetable cropping sustains populations.
Damage and how it spreads
Defoliation reduces yield; head and growing-point feeding plus frass contamination directly downgrade marketable produce — a major issue in leafy and heading crops.
Monitoring & scouting
Scout leaf undersides and growing points for eggs and young larvae; use pheromone traps for moth flights; act on early instars.
How to control it
- Target early instars before they enter heads;
- ensure coverage of undersides and growing points;
- rotate modes of action;
- conserve natural enemies.
Recommended Vegalab solution: Larva Control
Larva Control — natural broad-spectrum larvicide (oxymatrine) applied at early-instar stage with good coverage of leaf undersides and growing points.
| Role | Product | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Primary control | Larva Control |
Preventing it next season
Pheromone monitoring, early scouting, mode-of-action rotation, and treating young larvae before head contamination.
Claims and product availability vary by jurisdiction. Always read and follow the product label.