Salt, Vinegar and Pests

[Lumpy]

OK quite a while ago I read somewhere that you can spray your brassicas with a mild salt solution and over a few weeks they will become less palatable to slugs, snails and cabbage whites.
I went mooching and could'nt find what I had read before but did find this so.....

Extensive List of Organic Pest Control Remedies | Wake Up World

Anybody had a go with vinegar?

I realise that these kind of ideas will not be liked by a few people but I would like to know what everybody thinks?

[Lumpy]

I messed up the title and it wont let me edit so it is supposed to read...

Salt, Vinegar and Pests

[veggiechicken]

Title edited for you - although Salt and Pesto sounded appetising.

[Lumpy]

Ta VC not quite so numbnutish now - well in my opion anyway.

[veggiechicken]

Only Mods can edit Titles, Lumpty, I mean Lumpy

[solway cropper]

Most of these so-called remedies don't actually work any better than spraying with water. Out of curiosity I've tried quite a few over the years and always with negative results. Pests and diseases are not as stupid as some people seem to believe. It's a war of attrition out there in the garden!

I'm not advocating using chemicals but simple measures can be very effective. The only thing that stops cabbage whites is to cover your crop with with enviromesh or similar. It's the same with carrot fly. I won't go on but there are plenty of effective countermeasures you can take without resorting to either pesticides or silliness.

[Zelenina]

I've read that vinegar can be used as a weed killer, so maybe not so good to spray on your veggies.

As for salt, the best use for it against slugs I think is mixed with water in the bucket of slug doom that you put them in when on slug patrol in the garden. It kills them very quickly if it's strong enough. And seems to me more humane than squishing them or cutting them in half which I've read are other grapes' favourite methods. Slugs don't really die very quickly after such physical damage.

But it does need to be VERY salty water, or more like watery salt. I made up a new solution once that I thought was plenty strong enough, and sent quite a few Spanish slugs to their doom. But next morning I found one crawling merrily around the rim and several others heading off in various directions away from the bucket. So I suspect that if you sprayed your brassicas with enough salt to deter slugs, it would probably sicken or kill the plants.

[Mr Bones]

I had a go using vinegar as weed killer along a path edge once. It doesn't kill the roots of perennials, it stays in the ground and it spoilt my hand sprayer. Now I use a hoe or pull them out by hand.

[kathyd]

I wouldn't use salt and vinegar either, but I do remember reading about something with hot chili? I'm sure it was on here, but can't remember what plants it was for or what it helped against! Duh. Can anyone help please?

[noviceveggrower]

I have heard lemon juice for ants and spiders. Think with weeds its best just to either hoe or weed them out.

[Penellype]

I wouldn't use either salt or vinegar.

Salt is a mineral and will stay in the soil. Very few plants like salt apart from ones that usually grow near the sea. I think you would probably poison your veg, particularly if you were using concentrated salt solution.

Vinegar (and lemon juice) are acidic, and as many veg prefer slightly alkaline soil, they won't much like that either.

[rary]

I wouldn't use either salt or vinegar.

Salt is a mineral and will stay in the soil. Very few plants like salt apart from ones that usually grow near the sea.

If the cabbage was originally a coastal plant surly it would withstand some salt?