I hate slugs

[Stacey Steve]

Problem with slug pellets of course is that although you can use netting to stop birds eating the poisoned bodies, of course wood mice can still get under and eat them!

[lynda66]

i reckon they have plenty of things to eat in the compost, so hopefully they won't eat the dead pelleted ones, but i'll be much more careful now.

[Stacey Steve]

I don't like the idea of slug pellets but I use them as an effective measure.

I liked the idea of copper rings but the cost was too much, so I tried an idea of cutting rings of plastic drainpipe and putting a strip of the copper tape around the top edge.

I had a bed that I put some brussels in with the drainpipe/copper rings around and in the same bed some caulis and cabbage.

At the cauli and cabbage end I used pellets when I first planted these and none at the brussel end.

Now the caulis and cabages have had a lot of slug damage but hardly anything on the brussels.

I think some slugs have burrowed under the rings but it seems to have worked on the whole.

Next year I'm going to make some more of my rings and try it out again but more extensively have some plants of the same type with rings and others without and see what happens again.

Could be an answer for the future.

[lynda66]

i'm currently redesigning the garden, to incorporate a poly tunnel, chicken house, and fruit area, so i'll see about adding slug control methods as i go along, ...... was thinking of stripping some electrical cable, i have loads ...... i hate using pellets, but when theres loads of slugs it's easy and cheap and effective....... that and doing the nightly slug hunt, i only use them pellets where slugs are a problem.

[HeyWayne]

Ventured down to the plot last night to harvest what sweetcorn I had, and noticed a few of those large browny/orange coloured ones - you know the ones with the bright orange rim. Well there were three in my compost heap, two crossing the ground (broad daylight), and one half buried in one of the apples that had fallen from the tree. scoffing its face.

I found myself a short length of bamboo, fashioned a point on one end and set about making a slug kebab (shish) for the local bird population.

[Joe]

Had a prowl around the garden last night with torch, gloves and bucket of warm soapy water. I nabbed about a hundred of the blighters; all gone to slug heaven now. Just been up the garden and discovered that toady is back. I don't know where he hides normally but I'm sure glad to see him. I must build a toad hall for him, although he was quite happy in the pile of wood were I just spotted him. The wood is about to be assembled into a raised bed but I 'll find a bit for him to hang around in.

[kate&rob]

i use pellets but the animal friendly ones (growing success i think they are called) i don't like the thought of any creature, including hedgehogs getting poisoned by my slugs. has anyone used nemaslug? does it work? i don't like killing anything including slugs and snails, prefer to send them on a flying holiday, but they made a mess of my spuds this year.

[Joe]

If by a flying holiday you mean throwing them over your neighbours plot, well I'm sorry to inform you that doesn't work because slugs I am reliably informed are homing and will return within a few days. Now if you use a catapult and fire them at a wall then you will have much more success. ;-)

[Two_Sheds]

Had a prowl around the garden last night with torch, gloves and bucket of warm soapy water.

do you want clean slugs, or dead ones?
A bucket of salty water's what you want.


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I watched a lovely frog on my plot y'day. Already suspecting that my frogs are all vegetarians, I placed 4 mini-slugs and a baby snail in front of the frog. We sat there for 10 mins. The baby snail actually crawled up the back of the frog, onto his head and then over his eyeball.
Frog didn't even blink, much less eat the critter. When snail became really annoying, froggie hopped away without having eaten a thing.

[Joe]

do you want clean slugs, or dead ones?
A bucket of salty water's what you want.

I was going to tip the remains on the compost heap but is salty water safe? I once killed my wife's favourite plant with too much salt. I was trying to kill slugs that were all over the plant.

[lynda66]

apparently beetroots don't mind a bit of salt maybe you should pour the water down the drain and just add the slugs??........ anyway theres nowt up with being clean for your burial two sheds

[Demeter]

Just got back from hols and I have got *one* cauli left now. Grrrr!!!!

However, I did have a nice collection of slugs (the little black ones mostly) in my beer pot which thankfully wasn't too rank - just fairly gloopy - after being there for just over a week... Oh, and there were 2 slugs hiding *under* the beer trap!!

[snakeshack]

after spearing with a pointy cane you can flick them quite a long way....so
take two small children,two pointy sticks and get them to compete while you get on with the digging.
two birds with one stone,busy kids and less slugs,you dont even have to touch them!

[aud]

I am sure, which probally means i am wrong that one slug is a friendly sort and one isnt. One eats your prize winning plants and the other doesnt..........ok so i may have been watching bill oddie and been a little tipsey lol.

[Joe]

I am sure, which probally means i am wrong that one slug is a friendly sort and one isnt. One eats your prize winning plants and the other doesnt..........ok so i may have been watching bill oddie and been a little tipsey lol.

You mean one kind of slug is cannibalistic and eats the other slugs. The other type eat anything that grows in your garden except the weeds.

How do you tell the difference between a good slug and a bad one. Theyr'e all horrible and slimey.

I haven't tried to skewer them on a pointy stick yet. Tonight might be a good night to start; spear several of them on a stick and then bung on on the bonfire. Barbequed slug; I'll bet they are lovely with a bit of barbeque sauce.