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Can You Stop Slugs and Snails?
Can You Stop Slugs and Snails?
The Problem:
Anyone who has ever gardened can related to the following scenario. You place new plants into the ground, then you return to check on them the following morning only to discover that they have been shredded by marauding molluscs!
The Symptoms:
Signs of slug and snail damage include irregular holes chomped in leaves, and shiny slime trails over the ground, plants and pots. Other indicators include stems rasped away so that plants collapse, and seedlings devoured shortly after germination.
The Culprits:
Snails are gastropods: soft-bodied, shelled invertebrate animals. Snails are everywhere; you will find them gliding over pavements and around gardens when it is raining.
The most common and destructive snail you will encounter is the garden snail (Cornu aspersum). This large gastropod has a distinctive reticulate patterned shell in shades of brown, grey and dull gold. The smaller banded snails (Cepaea species) are much more colourful; banded in yellow, white, brown and chestnut – and cause less damage to plants.
Land slugs are gastropods that have evolved to reduce or entirely lose their shells. They mainly live in the soil, rotting wood, and in garden debris. Slugs damage roots and tubers as well as stems, leaves and flowers.
There are around 30 species of slugs in the U.K., however not all are harmful to plants, a few species are carnivorous.
When Are They Active?
Slugs and snails feed mainly in the evening and at night. They are active when the temperature is 5⁰C and above, which means damage can also occur during winter and spring. They love mild, damp nights.
Slugs and snails are voracious, they will quickly devour anything they find palatable. Slugs and snails are prolific breeders, they are hermaphrodites, with both male and female reproductive organs.
Slug Reproduction:
A garden slug can live for up to 1 year. Slugs can fertilize themselves if they don’t encounter a partner. They can produce six clutches of eggs in a year, with around 80 eggs in each laying – this is why their numbers can quickly rise during favourable conditions.
Did You Know?
On average, each cubic metre of garden soil contains an average of 200 slugs!
Dealing With Slugs and Snails:
1) Seek and Remove.
Go out at night with a torch and round them up into a bucket. You can take them far away and rehome them on a patch of waste ground. However, don’t be tempted to pop slugs & snails over the fence into your neighbours garden. It’s not nice, and snails have a well-developed homing instinct!
Some people drown slugs and snails in a bucket of hot water (to which salt can be added) – although this may be too ruthless for you. Others pop them into a plastic bag and dispatch them in the freezer.
2) Live Traps.
Up-turned citrus fruits, after they have been halved and the juice squeezed, or scooped out melons make great slug traps. Place them out at night and collect the sheltering molluscs every morning. Dispose of the slugs and snails as above.
We sell Defenders STV ‘Slugs away Baited Traps’. These poison-free, organic certified, reusable traps are a great way to catch slugs and snails. They are safe for use around children, wildlife and pets.
3) Drowning Traps.
Bury a plastic container such as an empty yoghurt pot in the soil near to the plants you want to protect. Leave the rim of the pot above soil level to prevent ground beetles falling in – they are the gardener’s friend and eat slugs.
We stock the Garland ‘Slug X Trap’. Just fill the reservoir with beer and wait for the thirsty critters to arrive! These flat-bottomed traps can be placed anywhere in the garden.
4) Physical Barriers.
A popular way to prevent slug and snail damage is to surround plants with a physical barrier that makes them look elsewhere for their meal.
Broken eggshells, pine bark and horticultural grit are popular home-remedy slug and snail barriers. However, scientific trials of these substances by the RHS has found them ineffective:
https://www.rhs.org.uk/science/articles/stop-slugs-and-snails
We stock some alternative barrier products, including:
- Growing Success ‘Slug Stop barrier pellets’ and Defenders ‘Slugs Away’ wool mats. These organic products are child, wildlife and pet friendly.
- Assorted copper bands and copper tape products. Some studies have shown copper barriers repel slugs.
- Grazers ‘G2 Slugs & Snails’ – a spray against slugs and snails. Safe for pets, children and the planet. In addition to deterring molluscs, it also stimulates and strengthens plants.
5) General Tidiness.
Keeping your garden neat and tidy is an effective way of keeping down slug and snail populations.
Raking over the ground exposes small slugs and gastropod eggs for birds to devour.
Remove rubbish. Empty flowerpots, old slates and bricks make excellent shelters for molluscs. Slugs love hiding under pot plants, so always check under them!
Clear fallen leaves from flowerbeds and lawns because they provide food and shelter for molluscs.
6) Chemical Pellets.
Chemical pellets can be used to kill slugs and snails.
Metaldehyde slug pellets will finally be banned from use in the Great Britain at the end of March 2022 to protect wildlife and the environment. To learn more about metaldehyde, and why it shouldn’t be used in the garden, visit:
https://deframedia.blog.gov.uk/2020/09/21/ban-on-the-use-of-metaldehyde-announced/
As a green alternative, we stock Growing Success ‘Slug Killer Advanced’ granules that are certified organic, to protect plants and seedlings. They contain ferric phosphate a naturally occurring chemical.
7) Biological Control.
Parasitic nematode worm treatments are available. When applied correctly they can be effective against small, soil dwelling slugs, but not snails.
However, you can practice natural biological control by encouraging slug and snail predators such as frogs, toads and birds into your garden by providing wildlife friendly features such as a small pond and hedges.
In Conclusion:
Slugs and snails thrive in the British climate. They are plentiful in most gardens, therefore some damage must be expected.
Certain plants are more vulnerable to slug and snail damage than others, so focus your attention on those. Hostas, vegetable seedlings, and newly purchased plants need more protection than established shrubs.
If you are plagued by molluscs then consider growing slug proof plants:
https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/20-slug-proof-plants/
Remember, slugs and snails also remove large volumes of decaying organic material, making them an important part of the ecosystem of your garden – they Nature’s recyclers. They also provide food for birds, frogs, toads, slow worms, and many insects.
So, can you stop slugs and snails? No! But by taking a holistic approach to gardening you can nurture a healthy environment where you can, with the help of nature, keep them under control.
Further reading:
To learn more about controlling another common garden pest, aphids, visit out blog:
https://www.capitalgardens.co.uk/blog/how-to-get-rid-of-aphids/
Beer traps are not 100. % effective. But there are a lot less attendees at the trophy ceremony.
From experience I have found Stella Artois to be the brew most cannot resist. Really, I tried a dozen
different beers. Stella is the one.
Set your alarm for 2 or 3 in the morning.
Armed with a flashlight and a pair of scissors find them, cut them in half and let them lay.
Their mates will come for their funeral and a quick snack. Bury them in the morning. They make good
fertiliser. Empty your beer traps into plastic milk bottles and throw out with the trash.
Slugs and snails do not like abrasive surfaces.
Cut up a beverage bottle. Cover with adhesive.
Sprinkle with sharp sand. Surround the base of your plant. Use pellets inside the enclosure.
Nothing really stops them. You feel better when you put up a fight.
I find that since feeding the birds in my back garden, the birds waiting for their food ln the mornings, hover around the flower borders, and eat the young snails, and any small slugs, which is a good thing.