Sounds like this one, it's not a good guy :

There are several white butterflies that use cole crops as host plants. What they are doing is laying eggs. Look for the green caterpillars all over your plants, enjoying the cabbage and broccoli before you do, lol!

By the way, moths and butterflies don't eat plants; only their larvae (caterpillars) do.

It sounds like you have cabbage moths. They lay their eggs on the cabbage and other cole crops, then the little green worms that hatch from the eggs eat it. I spray with bt or use row cover to control them. The bt is only effective on the worms so you have to wait until you see holes in the leaves to spray. The row cover keeps the moths from laying the eggs so you need to put it on early.

i will get closer to it(them) to see if that's what it is ... it's almost a white color, but i will look for dots ... there is, i think, only 1 or 2 (i know that sounds like i'm naive, but there is hardly any) and i'm out there every day -- I LOVE MY GARDEN!!! .....

will seven kill em? the broc was eaten by the earwigs, we think, but this guy, there are no eggs or wormies slimin' around ....

thank you for such a quick response and great knowledge ....

darlene

vgkg posted info about the Cabbage White. However, there are other plain white butterflies that use the cole crops to lay eggs on. Just so you know, when you start looking.

will seven, the insecticide kill them?

BT is the preferred insecticde for all types of caterpillers, but sevin will do it. I cover my plants with floating row covers as soon as I plant them and this has solved the problem for me - but you must put it on them before the moths show up. If you want to try next year and can't get the floating row covers, for small areas, I've also used a material that looks like bridal veil lace from Walmart - comes in green.

Better, also safer and cheaper, than Sevin is handpicking, if your garden is of a reasonable size.

As for Bt, doesn't work when the caterpillars are half-grown or older.

So, back to handpicking!
:>)

thank you, thank you, thank all of you for your kind advice and help ... i'll have a closer look at this flying moth (like i said, there seems to be only 1 or 2 so i will have to *catch* it flying around ... i even asked my dh today and he agrees with me, there are hardly any at all ....

again, thank you for your time and trouble ...

darlene, yakima, wa

It only takes one moth to lay enough eggs to make you not want to eat your broccoli! The caterpillars are the same colour as the stems and you sometimes can't see them until your eating them. YICK. I am having excellent results this year by confusing the moths. I have moved all of the brassicas away from where I usually plant them, and I have planted Hyssop officinalis here and there between the cabbages and the broccoli (I read somewhere that it repells them). I've seen the moths fluttering around the yard where the broccoli used to be, but so far no eggs or caterpillars (I'm checking often!) and no chemicals on my food. YAY!

I just learned recently about cole crop moth/worms, otherwise would not have thought to look under the leaves, let alone determine the significance of teeny bumps... the imported cabbageworm does lay wee elongated whitish eggs, singly (so might see 1 or 2 on a leaf).
Pics in this link:
http://www3.telus.net/conrad/insects/icw.html

For my potted crops, I don't have too many so looking under & just squishing the eggs actually worked. But in the (rather crowded) garden bed I haven't been so diligent - hence, more holey leaves (slugs also seem more active there).

Apparently there are other such critters too; the link below doesn't have pics but does describe the moths, larvae, and where to find the eggs.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cabbage patch pests: http://eap.mcgill.ca/CPCM_8.htm

Almost all the caterpillars (loopers) will be on the bottoms of the leaves. Looks like they have learned they do not get sprayed as much there with BT.

Just now starting broccoli and cabbage for fall planting. I gave up on spring planting. The loopers can go somewhere else.

Tom