tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post6861645696130140975..comments2023-11-03T01:09:17.420-07:00Comments on My Suburban Homestead: War on SlugsVegetable Garden Cookhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01641599988061148892noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-82540441046622445152020-05-06T13:45:24.080-07:002020-05-06T13:45:24.080-07:00Salt destroys them! Use salt around the plants lik...Salt destroys them! Use salt around the plants like a barrier. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05731454956419810829noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-33966226037198056412011-07-27T03:06:50.175-07:002011-07-27T03:06:50.175-07:00Hi Amy,
I found your War On Slugs entries while s...Hi Amy,<br /><br />I found your War On Slugs entries while searching for different ideas for slug and snail repellent / killer. I've been looking for a quick fix because I'm going out of town for a week and can't do any "picking" when I'm not here...so I'm worried all my little plants will be going by then :(<br /><br />I just wanted to weigh in on the cornmeal idea. It's a total myth. One of the things we've been doing with our excess snail population is cleaning out their digestive systems in a fishtank for a few weeks and then eating them--and one of the main things we feed them is cornmeal. I realize snails and slugs aren't the same, but I doubt there'd be something that one loved and the other hated! <br /><br />Also: I just wanted to echo that coffee grounds don't seem to work. I've been using used coffee grounds as a soil amendment and the snails and slugs have no problem crossing it, at least in the small amounts I've added to the garden so far. However, research does seem to show that caffeine kills young snails and slugs and repels the older ones...maybe there is just not enough "available" caffeine in used grounds or dry unused grounds? The research was done with a caffeine spray, but the amount of caffeine involved was about the same as drip coffee. Maybe it would be worth trying pouring some day-old coffee around the plants?Lynaehttp://panopoly.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-60268846580674255402011-02-28T18:06:10.832-08:002011-02-28T18:06:10.832-08:00When I pick them off by hand, I use a little plast...When I pick them off by hand, I use a little plastic spoon and a cup of saltwater. I just scoop them off the leaves or the ground and drop them in the saltwater. None of them ever survive to crawl back out. And then I just pour the saltwater into my trashcan before going back into the house. The whole affair rarely takes more than 2 minutes per raised bed.chrisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-52792068721267220202010-10-27T09:50:38.041-07:002010-10-27T09:50:38.041-07:00Hey Lucy, thanks for stopping by. I did do a littl...Hey Lucy, thanks for stopping by. I did do a little experiment with traps. You may be interested reading that article. I am still transferring pages from my old site and see that it isn't up on the new site yet. Hope to have all the rest of the pages updated today. What part of the country are you in?Vegetable Garden Cookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01641599988061148892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-15001953131054968812010-10-27T03:58:50.674-07:002010-10-27T03:58:50.674-07:00Hi Amy,
love your blog! I also have a war on slugs...Hi Amy,<br />love your blog! I also have a war on slugs. Being vegetarian I couldn't kill them for a long time until the day they ate all my potato plants. Then it was On!<br /><br />I also find the plank'n'kill method is the best. I have a mini-bucket (pail?) - I add a big squirt of dishwashing detergent and half-fill with warm water. The slugs sink like a rock to the bottom, no gross squishing or slicing! I'm not sure why, but my guess is that disrupts their breathing mechanism and suffocates them fairly quickly. Certainly when I was dropping them into my yeast/honey/whiskey/water trap, they'd crawl right out... 2 or 3 times each slug! It was traumatic.<br /><br />The soapy water still works when the water is cold, so I leave it next to my vegie patch for 24-hour slug-killing capacity. I empty and refill the bucket twice a week (when they start floating to the surface.. ew!).<br /><br />Good luck :)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01611181284380551124noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-46647548855691508832010-10-10T23:19:25.383-07:002010-10-10T23:19:25.383-07:00Hi Amy, thanks for your comment on my own slug blo...Hi Amy, thanks for your comment on my own slug blog post. I see that you've had many of the same experiences I have and seem to have a similarly terrible slug problem. One of my neighbors has less trouble than I do - and I know that he spends lots of time keeping the earth around his plants completely smoothly packed, and never uses mulch, removes all leaves, etc. So reducing their habitat seems to help. Otherwise search and destroy has worked best for me, in addition to just not planting lots of things. Maybe not a solution for you if you're trying to be self-sufficient.Barbarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16956948481990170675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-53640662807706267172010-10-07T09:24:34.955-07:002010-10-07T09:24:34.955-07:00Actually yes I have tried copper. Doesn't work...Actually yes I have tried copper. Doesn't work. And I've found with the beer traps that it will capture some slugs but the others will take a big drink and move on. You can see all my experiments here: http://amysoddities.blogspot.com/2010/09/slugs.htmlVegetable Garden Cookhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01641599988061148892noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-81919342589620086172010-10-06T22:18:31.804-07:002010-10-06T22:18:31.804-07:00I have been using the beer traps and have had fair...I have been using the beer traps and have had fairly good luck, although you do have to change them often. I have been using old margarine, cottage cheese or similar sized containers (their only about 4 inches across and maybe 4 inches deep). I put them out the other day when it started getting rainy and the next day had over 20 slugs in my traps. I'm also still looking for that one thing that will keep them off my garden. Have you tried copper, I've heard it works well. Have you tried it?afreckledliphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12517377036495292797noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-87165742226143130982010-10-01T10:53:38.980-07:002010-10-01T10:53:38.980-07:00*some* chickens are decent slug hunters. My plymo...*some* chickens are decent slug hunters. My plymouth barred rock LOVES slugs and will eat anything about 1.5 inches and smaller. My larger australorp apparently finds them disgusting, or intimidating. <br />I've heard ducks are good at slug control.MMhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09979235715301033573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3006817958555301605.post-81382391697101378712010-09-07T21:05:05.582-07:002010-09-07T21:05:05.582-07:00Hi Amy Dear, I use the low toxicity bait. It doesn...Hi Amy Dear, I use the low toxicity bait. It doesn't seem to hurt anything or anyone but again I don't have small kids or animals other than cats who know better. <br /><br />In the last few years I'm noticing more snails than slugs. They don't do as much damage but they're still herbivores. ... It's an ongoing battle and with this recent rain, yikes, they'll be out in droves. Which I had some advice...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com