seven 7 dust

OK...so there are these perfect holes in on some of the leaves of my red cabbage plants, and some of my kale and collard leaves look munched on. I saw one tiny green worm and I smashed him into the ground. My neighbor says seven 7 dust will help and is not harmful. I try to be as organic as possible, but he says he has beetles in his garden, which is along his fence which is the ony thing that separates our gardens. So whatever he has can surely march on over.

Will this dust work? Is it safe to use? I go out every day and check for critters, but I need to take it to the next level. DGers help me, please.

Most likely you have cabbage worms. Bt (DIPEL or Thuricide) is the most effective on these or other caterpilars. Carbaryl (Sevin) is relatively safe, but is most effective on beetles. Harlequin beetles are about the only thing in that family that does major damage to brassicas. They are so garishly colored you would have spotted them.

Can I get this at my local co-op?

The best varmint control facter is; The higher the brix reading on a plants sap, the more the bugs and worms dislike it. get it to 12 brix and that's about where most eaters will leave. The brix is the measure of crude carbohydrate with around 50% of that being simple sugars. So the best tasting produce will be the most likely to not have the munchers gobbling it. Raising the brix is a matter of getting the minerals in the right balance and enough of them.
There's really no limit to how high it could go given the right management of the soil. I've heard of brix going into the 20's on several crops. Here's a nice article on it. http://www.westonaprice.org/farming/nutrient-dense.html

A sevin dust formulation is very toxic to bees. They can even bring it back to the nest and the whole nest is killed.

This is from Cornell University.

"Protect Honeybees in the Garden
You can do a few things to protect honey bees in your own garden. One is to use integrated pest management methods, so that the use of insecticides is limited. Insecticides that are considered "highly toxic" to bees include diazinon, lindane, malathion, Orthene and Sevin. Relatively non-toxic insecticides include Bacillus thuringiensis (DiPel), pyrethrum, rotenone, insecticidal soap and horticultural oil. Also consider the formulation; wettable powder and dust formulations are more toxic to bees than are emulsifiable concentrates (liquids).

If you must use an insecticide to treat a pest, do so when bees are least active, which is usually in early morning or late evening. Rely on "soft" insecticides such as soaps and oils for aphids, whiteflies and other soft-bodied insects. If possible, don't spray any flowering plants that are attractive to bees."

Reuben...thanks so much. I read the whole article,bookmarked it, and bought a refractometer on ebay. I will be using this method, as it will cut down, if not eliminate, the need to use any types of pesiticides. Cowpea, I am allergic to bees, but I certainly don't want to kill them. I need them to pollinate my pumpkin plants! (at least that's what I'm told). I know we need them for honey too, one of my most favorite things.

Thanks so much guys. I just hope my crop doesn't get ruined before I can get the brix level raised.

Again, bacillus thuringensis aka bt is very effective on cabbage loopers and worms. It is a targeted organic control and FAR superior, in my opinion, to using sevin which is pretty toxic stuff.

You might also want to consider growing cole crops like cabbages under floating row covers which will prevent the looper damage without using any pesticide.