Nematodes????

[cottage garden]

Has any one else tried these?? I bought some about three weeks ago and applied immediately using instructions correctly but the little blighters are still there in force. I put a beer trap down and it was full up in the morning with little baby slugs.

I know the packet was within its sell by date so I don't understand, is it just me or do they normally work.

[Spreadsheet]

For me it worked a little bit - reduced the population at least slightly - but not for as long as it suggests - maybe 2 weeks maximum.

All helps though!

[Sebbster]

I think Nematodes are too expensive and although they do reduce the population, not by enough to warrant the expense.

I use organic pellets to save my produce, but mostly only brassicas that I have under fleece or vironmesh. Too many untended plots on my site so the slugs and snails just come over from those, so I dont bother with Nematodes.

[SueA]

Hi Cottage Garden, I've used nematodes in the past & they seem to have a slight affect on the slug population but you have to use them a couple of times a year to get a significant difference. They only work on small slugs which live in the soil as well & don't affect snails. If you have a lot of problems with slugs in the soil eating potato crops etc. they're worth a try. They're supposed to take a couple of weeks to start having an affect & they die off after about 6 weeks I think due to the fact that they have killed off their own food supply. The ground temperatures have to be right for them also.

[muckdiva]

Used them a couple of weeks ago, think they must have drowned cos they made a bit of difference for a short time in a couple of locations, but everywhere else I watered with the solution, nada. Will try again in the autumn, but have reverted to using Growing Success (safe?!) slug pellets, not even sure if they are working the amount of slug damage there is, hey ho.

[Vegmonkey]

I think they work well. I've only just noticed that they have returned in force after 4 weeks. Nothing better than stalking the garden dressed in combat gear with a large dutch hoe though!

[iainhawk]

No to Nematodes

I would never use these again- they are bad and can be a total con.

I have ordered 5 packets this year and they have all contained no live nematodes- they are all dead. ( i am a biologist working with parasites and have used all of the correct proceedures). I suspect that they were dead for some time- as when you try to extract certain compunds from the nematodes they are highly degraded- indicating old tissue- and not fresh as expected.

If the nematodes are alive they will of course work- but even so, this is not a good way to control numbers of slugs- it is just the same as any ' quick fix' method- and if you are going to pay £10 plus for a box you want it to work very well.

There is no way for most people to check if the nematodes are alive or not- you take it on trust- I would not do this ever again- as trust is often abused. It could simply be down to the company being too big to check their proceedures properly, bad storage, bad packaging, bad delivery etc.

The most effective control is a mixed strategy- collecting, removing breeding locations and repelling. Quick fixes rarely work.