Runner beans eaten by slugs

Spirit_2

I had my runner bean plants growing in a cloche, they had all come up and were about to be potted on however as the title says..the slugs have eaten them.

Am I too late to start again?

Should I buy plants now?

I am on the south coast so mild weather here.

peter_the_piper

No.
Yes.
Plenty of tome for them to grow.

good_advice

I think you planted to early. If the slugs had not fine dined Jack Frost would have.

We have not yet sewed runner bean seeds.
We will be soaking the large seeds over night and planting indoors in a week or two's time.
Planting out starts after the last frost, around the 1st June.

Some gardeners put egg shells around the plants or slug pellets.
Others go out after dark and look for pest slugs near their plants.

twiglet98

I get Slug Nematodes (haven't found them cheaper than Amazon, someone else might have...?), dissolve in a watering can and water over everything. Copper tape in a ring around plants or clumps of plants - or make a line of old pennies! Grit, salt, coffee grounds, crushed eggshells, something dry like bran, porridge etc but need to reapply if it gets wet, you can try beer traps but I've never managed to really massacre the population with them. If necessary go out after dark with a torch and scissors and chop the little blighters up.

Not too late for beans, actually I haven't sown anything yet as I don't have a greenhouse or sunny windowsills, and I think tomatoes are the only seeds I won't bother to sow at all as I've just been given a load of well-grown plants.

Yorkie1

I only sowed my bean seeds a week or so ago. I find they get munched at soil level if sowed direct, so I start them off in pots indoors and then plant them out after the last estimated frost date - start of June for me.

rum1

Same here i planted mine in pots about a week ago and wont place in the soil until they have grown on

wallbash

Runner beans seeds are cheap, so I took a chance and grew a dozen a month ago , in pots , in the green house, then last week sowed another dozen.
1st lot are now planted out in the garden , will they survive here in the SE , will tell you in another month.
But as a back up will sow the rest of the packet, straight in the ground next week.

Spirit_2

Thanks every one. I will plant again. They were in pots, but the slugs climbed in.

Bit reluctant to use slug pellets as I have chickens who free range. The veg patch is fenced and chicken wired but they hop up onto the fence and jump in.

We have tried netting too but a fortnight ago found a tawny owl tangled up in it and hanging by a claw. The good news is that the claw was not damaged and after a night in a bunny hutch to recover the owl was fine and flew away.

TonyMMM

I find that runner beans planted out early do survive, even if there is a slight frost, but they tend to sulk a bit and don't grow as quickly as those planted later.

Later sowings & planting out crop just as quickly and more heavily in my experience.