
Green caterpillars are the larvae of insects in the order Lepidoptera, which includes butterflies and moths. In the first phase of its life cycle, the butterfly or moth lays its eggs on the plant and in a few days the caterpillar is born, characterized by a strong appetite and the need to feed continuously in order to develop and become a new butterfly. It is this voracious and aggressive appetite that gives rise to one of the most frequent problems that we find in plants and crops, which can cause, in the event of a plague, such serious damage that it determines the total loss of the crop.
There are a large number of chemical products used to protect plantations. However, these can be potentially toxic to humans and produce harmful effects on our health. At EcologíaVerde we explain 10 home remedies to remove green caterpillars from plantswithout secondary effects and being respectful with the environment.
How to spot green caterpillars on plants
Detecting the presence of green caterpillars in the plants of the garden or garden is relatively simple, in the first place because of its size and colors and secondly due to the visibility and evidence of the symptoms they produce in plants. Some of the caterpillar symptoms on plants Easier to notice are:
- Galleries
- defoliations
- holes
- Surface leaf bites
Although they can also attack and feed on tender shoots and fruits. Also, you will see an accumulation of black dots on the leaveswhich are actually the feces of the caterpillars.
If your plants show these signs, keep observing them well because you will easily end up seeing the green caterpillars on them, whether they are small or with more colors and somewhat larger in size.

Garlic
Garlic (allium sativum) It is a natural insect repellent. This natural remedy to eliminate green worms is easy to prepare. Enough with crush a head of garlic along with a pair of glasses of water and let it settle to get an effective and pasty insecticide.
Although it is true that to facilitate its application it should be mixed again, once it has been left to rest with three liters of water we will have obtained a more liquid product that is easy to apply. Depending on the amount of water that we throw, both at the time of making the mixture and later when letting it rest, we will have an insecticide more or less solid.
In this other article we show you more recipes for natural insecticides for plants, including garlic.

Tomatoes
The following home remedy to eliminate green caterpillars on plants is also simple. The tomato plant (Solanum lycopersicum) produces during its metabolism molecules called alkaloids that act as an excellent repellent to repel aphids, green worms and caterpillars.
The preparation of the pesticide consists of:
- shred or chop the leaves of this plant.
- mix them up with water.
- Let rest the mixture: as in the case of garlic, it is convenient to dilute the mixture again so that its use is easier.
Perhaps for this home remedy you are interested in finding out how to prune tomatoes.

Cilantro
Also known as Chinese parsley, coriander (Coriandrum sativum) is a plant native to Asia that has multiple properties, being used to digestive problemsinfections caused by fungi and bacteriasome pains and of course, to repel the most annoying species of our gardens and orchards such as green worms.
To eliminate green caterpillars on coriander plants, it is necessary that we prepare the plant in the following way:
- Boil coriander for a few 10 minutes.
- strain the mixture when we already have it boiled,
- Place the result inside a spray and grind up on our affected plant.

Nettles
nettle (hives) is a plant considered a “weed” because it grows easily in fields and gardens and because it causes itching and inflammation on the skin, when in contact with it, due to the release of a acidic substance located in your hairs.
However, it is also known for its medicinal properties and for being an excellent pesticide, so mixing 100 grams of nettle with 10 liters of water and leaving it to rest, a perfect pesticide is obtained that makes it one of the home remedies to eliminate green caterpillars from plants.
Do not hesitate to read this other post where we talk about how to Eliminate weeds, to have more information on the subject.

Tobacco
Although at first glance it seems crazy, tobacco can be one of the home remedies to know how to eliminate green worms from plants. The tobacco plant (Nicotiana tobacco) has an alkaloid called nicotine that acts as a repellent against pestsso that, mixing some 60 grams of natural tobacco with 1 liter of water we can get an excellent pesticide.

Eggshells
There are other natural products of animal origin, such as eggshells, which, in addition to being a perfect repellent, have multiple benefits for plants, acting as a fertilizer rich in calcium carbonate. Its application consists of crush the shells Y spread them on the base of plants to eliminate green caterpillars.

aromatic plants
Another option to eliminate green caterpillars on plants is by growing aromatic plants such as basil (Ocimum basilicum) wave peppermint (mentha spicata). This last plant is a good repellent for ants, slugs and fleas, too.
In this case, we won’t need to create any mix, but the mere presence of these plants already drives away the green worms. The smell of basil and mint serves as a home remedy against these bugs, in addition to attract waspswhich feed on caterpillars.
If you want to know how to plant and grow basil or how to care for mint, don’t hesitate to read these posts that we suggest.

dish soap
Although it may not seem like it, another of the home remedies to eliminate caterpillars from plants is mixing water with soap that we use to clean our dishes. We must bear in mind that the amount of soap that we will use will be quite low, since otherwise we could cause other damage to the plant.
Once you have this mix, spray once a day to be able to eliminate the green worms in the plants.

hot pepper
How to remove worms from plants is also easy thanks to hot peppers. This home remedy against green caterpillars is based on cut and shred small pieces of hot pepper: they can be chili, jalapeños or cayenne.
Once we have it, we must distribute this result throughout the land of the plant biweekly. In case it rains, repeat this process more often so that you can eliminate the green grubs on the plants.

Natural balance
Another effective, natural and respectful method with the environment and with our plantations consists, precisely, in promote the biodiversity of species and their balance so that, by planting allied crops or favoring the existence of certain natural predatorsit can combat the appearance of green worm pests on plants.
A home remedy to carry out this and make the green caterpillars disappear in your garden is building birdhouses. By attracting these caterpillar-predating animals, we can ensure that they control caterpillar populations.

Prevent green caterpillars on plants
One of the most effective ways to help prevent caterpillars or greenworms on plants is through:
- use cardboard: if we place pieces of cardboard around our plant, this will prevent worms and caterpillars from accessing it to feed on its leaves.
- Clean your garden and plants: if we manage to keep our area clean and in a healthy state, it is quite unlikely that the caterpillars will not be able to reach our plants. In the event that we see a caterpillar on our plant, we can simply pick it up with our hands and remove it.
- Cover with translucent fabric: This method is particularly effective for cabbage, due to the caterpillar of the cabbage moth, which is the one that attacks the most. This fabric acts as a barrier against the eggs that can be laid on the cabbage.
If you want to read more articles similar to Home remedies to eliminate caterpillars from plantswe recommend that you enter our Garden Care category.