Gardening Question of the Week: Snail and Slug Control in the Garden.
Thursday March 27, 2008
Isn't it fascinating how quickly insects can find your plants? One minute your plant leaves are barely unfurled and the next, they're being eaten. Spring rains, as welcome as they are, seem to float every snail or slug in the area into close proximity with early spring plants. So the snail and slug questions are starting to pour in. I don't have the patience for saucers of beer, shakers of salt or reapplications of diatomaceous earth. A few weeks ago I mentioned mulching with coffee grounds, but my preferred method of slug disposal is to toss them to the nearest walkway and wait for the birds to find them. Unfortunately this is not always affective.
This week I'm asking for your tips on how you manage snails and slugs. Let me know what's worked and what hasn't. Submit your tip here and I'll put all of our ideas together so we can all have the advantage in the war against slugs this year.
Photo: © Phil Mislinski / Getty Images. Used with Permission.
Comments
I use crushed egg shells. Beer tends to attract every slug in the neighborhood (at least it seems that way!). Be sure to rinse out and microwave the shells for a minute or two to sterilize them or you will have rodents coming to your garden. The sharp shells will cut the slugs and they will die. I sprinkle them around my hostas and anything else that shows signs of slug damage.
I’ve heard that garter snakes will eat slugs. I don’t know if everyone would welcome snakes in their garden, but I think it would be better than slugs. I have tried to put two of them in my garden so far, but I think my cats are eating them. I like the eggshell idea.