This topic contains 9 replies, has 5 voices, and was last updated by Poolfield 11 years, 5 months ago.
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Hello Ray, thanks for your enthusiasm. it sounds a big project and suitable for mulching.
The slugs and snails come from overgrowth and lots of both habitat and decaying leaves to eat. So as you get on top of the weeds, molluscs will diminish, and you want clear edges around your growing space too.
I think that this year has been like no other for the numbers of slugs and snails. Normally I don’t have a problem with them in my garden – am guessing it is because I have a pond and therefore good numbers of frogs, toads and also several very large grass snakes who all view slugs and snails as a delicious delicacy. However, this year they couldn’t keep up with them, so i had to do something. In the end I put out beer traps – small plastic yogurt pots buried up to the top of the pot and then half filled with beer or lager. It works a treat as they seem to prefer beer to my seedlings and cabbages and then the birds feast on the contents when you empty it out on the ground!
I had a go with beer traps in the polytunnel last night, I used old Sundae Dishes and I was amazed at how many slugs I collected. Very successful and less sickening than stabbing them with a knife. At least they died happy.
I am still collecting 40 ish slugs every few days from 4 dishes in the polytunnel, there must have been huge numbers in there. I wonder how much longer this will continue?
My word that is a lot and it shows how their numbers had grown out of hand, so you are doing absolutely the right thing to reach a point (soon I would imagine!) where only a few slugs remain and you can live with that low number.
If you have anything growing with old leaves spread over the soil, such as rocket, spinach, lettuce, I would remove them to leave just the healthy leaves above. That gives less habitat and also less reason for new slugs to come in, as they are always looking out for decaying leaves to do their recycling bit.
I seem to have solved the problem of large slugs and snails but still have a problem with small black/grey slugs which I find actually in my cabbages and cauliflowers. Any suggestions on how to get rid.
I find that in wet conditions and after a season such as we have hed, which has been perfect for continuous breeding and rebreeding of slugs, a certain number of small ones is acceptable when you still have a harvest. I have been finding more than usual in cabbage hearts – but the hearts are good.
At last we seem to have got to a point where the crops make more growth than the slug numbers can harm.
I guess in frosty weather the slugs slow down? I will continue to put the traps in new areas before I plant seedling next season. Thanks to the course in Oct I am now picking healthy mixed leaves (and peashoots) in autumn/winter for the first time ever.
Thankyou for this feedback and well done! Your trapping methods sound well organised and it is encouraging that you have seen slug numbers reduce to the point of causing bearable damage. You are right that slugs slow down in winter, thank goodness, but the small grey ones keep nibbling and I find that outer leaves of spring cabbage always look laced by February, before vibrant new growth resumes.
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