Something is cutting off my seedlings at the base overnight — what is it?
Cutworms — fat gray or brown caterpillars that live in the soil and feed at night — cut young stems at or just below the soil surface, and a simple collar around each stem can stop them.
Cutworms are the larvae of several moth species. They spend the day curled up 1–2 inches below the soil surface, then emerge at night to feed. They don't eat the leaves — they cut the stem at the soil line and move on. A tray of 20 transplants can lose a third of its plants in a single night. The sign is a cleanly severed stem lying next to its hole in the ground.
The most reliable control is a physical collar around each transplant stem. This can be a toilet paper roll cut in half, a tin can with the bottom removed, a cup with the bottom cut out, or a ring of cardboard. Press it 1 inch into the soil and leave 2 inches above. The cutworm can't navigate around it. This approach works essentially every time and requires no chemicals.
Diatomaceous earth (food-grade) sprinkled in a ring around transplants can deter cutworms, though it needs reapplication after rain. Beneficial nematodes (Steinernema carpocapsae) applied to moist soil can reduce cutworm populations over time but work best as a preventive measure in soil where cutworms have been a recurring problem.
If you dig around a cut plant the morning after the damage, you'll often find the cutworm curled up in the soil within 2–4 inches. Hand-picking is satisfying and effective when you can find them. The problem tends to be worst in the first 2–3 weeks after transplanting; once stems are more than pencil-thick, cutworms typically move on to easier targets.
- TomatoThe warm-season anchor of the summer garden.
- PepperA tropical perennial grown as an annual — patient, slow, and particular about warmth.
- KaleThe cold-weather workhorse that improves when everything else quits.
- LettuceA cool-season leaf crop that thrives in spring and fall, sulks in summer heat.
- CucumberA thirsty vine that wants warm soil, steady water, and something to climb.
- Bacterial WiltCucurbit vines wilt rapidly despite moisture; cut stem shows sticky ooze that threads when pulled apart.
- Bird DamageBerries pecked or missing, seeds scratched from beds, and seedlings dislodged — birds feeding on ripe fruit, seeds, or soil grubs.
- Black RotV-shaped yellow lesions at brassica leaf margins with blackened veins inside — a bacterial disease that moves through the vascular system.
- Gray Mold (Botrytis)Gray-brown fuzzy mold on fruit, flowers, or stems — soft, collapsing tissue beneath the coating in cool, wet conditions.
- Brown Marmorated Stink BugSunken, corky dimples on fruit and pods caused by a mottled brown shield bug feeding through the skin.
- My transplants look wilted and sad after planting — is this normal?Some wilting and leaf drop in the first few days after transplanting is normal; if a plant is still wilting after a week and well-watered, the roots may have been damaged.
- I have aphids on multiple plants — do I need to spray everything?Aphids tend to colonize plants under stress and naturally crash when beneficial insects find them — water sprays and patience are often more effective than pesticides.
- How do I deal with cabbage worms on my kale and other brassicas?Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) spray applied to the leaf undersides is the most targeted control for cabbage worms — hand-picking and row cover are also effective without any spray at all.