Slugs/snails

Poppie68

Has anyone got any pet and toddler friendly tips on getting rid of pesky slugs and snails. They destoyed about 50% of my plants last year and after replanting over the last few weeks have just been out and discovered they have started again. I also have a large decking area and noticed last night they have reappeared on there, they come up through the gaps but have disappeared by morning but they make the decking unsuitable to use in the evenings.
I have a dog and a 1 year old grandaughter so need something safe to use...any ideas?

Dizzy_Ditzy

salt around the plants

crushed up egg shells


geraniums


beer cups sunk into the ground




In my garden, slugs get salted and snail go for the flight [STRIKE]for [/STRIKE]of their lives

Poppie68

Oh thankyou thought about salt but with this rain will be forever going out to replenish but will still use it and try the egg shells....hell and the beer cups may as well go the whole hog.

Mojisola

Poppie68 wrote: »

Has anyone got any pet and toddler friendly tips on getting rid of pesky slugs and snails. They destoyed about 50% of my plants last year and after replanting over the last few weeks have just been out and discovered they have started again. I also have a large decking area and noticed last night they have reappeared on there, they come up through the gaps but have disappeared by morning but they make the decking unsuitable to use in the evenings.
I have a dog and a 1 year old grandaughter so need something safe to use...any ideas?

Can you sprinkle slug and snail killer down through the slats in the decking? If they eat it and die there, there shouldn't be any risk to the dog or child.

DigForVictory

Teach child to relocate all slugs & snails to a pail & pay a rate per critter. (Empty pail into chicken run.)

It may not be MS (we ended up owing "snailfarmer" £37!) but it certainly reduced the slug & snail population.

A neighbour swears buy "sharp sand" from the builders. Apparently the soft underside of these things doesn't like sharp edges. Less risky to plants than salt as well.

forgotmyname

Dont put salt near any Sunflowers. The must have seen it growing from far and wide.

I sprinkled a very small amount of salt near the base and the plant was dead the next day.
Seems its highly toxic to Sunflowers. Take at least 4 times more to have any effects on the weeds. But its a safe alternative.

Make a slug/snail haven. Somewhere nice and dark and moist. Then collect them up in one swoop.

tanith

I used to go out and hunt them down every day then salt them , I got rid of them after a few months.

km1423

Try copper tape for plant pots, and copper wire.

Coffee grounds (i.e. remnants from ground coffee) ask Pret/Costa and the like for a bag - usually free, or a very small cost round plants. Ground Egg shells good too - in fact anything sharp.

As has been suggested by others sprinkle salt between the decking. Salt will have to be replenished after rains, slugs will be more active then anyway.

Slugs are often an indication of damp areas/ too much moisture. So look at the source of where they may be coming from, rather than where you see or find them, and you'll be onto a winner.

I_have_spoken

If there's been rain, go out with a torch and pair of kitchen scissors...snip/crunch.

elsien

I now mainly buy plants that slugs and snails leave alone, after a bit of trial and error to see what works in my part of the world.
And I use the copper tape round pots and round the base of things like hostas.
The Growing Success organic slug killer is safe around children and pets but I did find it needed to be redone after it had rained. Might help for your decking though.

lostinrates

Poppie68 wrote: »

Has anyone got any pet and toddler friendly tips on getting rid of pesky slugs and snails. They destoyed about 50% of my plants last year and after replanting over the last few weeks have just been out and discovered they have started again. I also have a large decking area and noticed last night they have reappeared on there, they come up through the gaps but have disappeared by morning but they make the decking unsuitable to use in the evenings.
I have a dog and a 1 year old grandaughter so need something safe to use...any ideas?

Are you clearing up after your dog quickly and thoroughly? Dog poo is very attractive to slugs. Keeping the garden clear of that might help keep them at bay? We had far fewer our first year here, when the property had been unoccupied for a couple of years, than we do now.....three dogs