Garden Tip - Dealing With Slugs
It’s been such an unbelievably cool, damp spring that the slugs have thrived this year. I know, they are always a problem here in the Valley, just by the nature of the place, but this year seems worse. Slug baits can be toxic to both pets and people, so really, this has to be a last resort option. Here are some other options for gardeners who want to protect their crops and flower arrays. Remember, this is war!
1. Beer. Slugs love it. Plant a clean tuna can down in the soil so that the top is even with the ground, and fill it halfof the way up with beer. Slugs will flock to it and, not being able to escape, they will drown happy in the beer.
2. Make an inexpensive slub trap with a two-liter soda pop bottle. Just cut off the top third of the bottle and stick it back into the bottom 2/3, neck first. Secure the edges with duct tape or staples and drop some beer inside to lure in the slugs. Oddly, their carcasses left in the trap will be inviting to even more slugs. When it’s full, throw it out and make a new one.
3. Leave a moist garbage bag in your garden for the slugs and snails to crawl into overnight. In the a.m., tie off the bag and put it in the freezer for a few hours to kill them without a mess.
4. Are you a night owl? Head outside at night with a flashlight, and catch the nocturnal slugs in the act of raiding your garden. You can wear rubber goves and pick them off, dropping them into a jar of soapy water with a screw -on cap for the jar. Obviously, you will want to get rid of the jar…..
5. Plant to deter the slimy buggers. Slugs love to chew on potatoes, tomatoes, beans, and lettuce, but they abhor the taste of highly scented plants such as rosemary, lavendar, or sage. Interplant these herbs with your tender veggies to deter the slugs.
6. Slugs love beer, but hate coffee. Throw your cold coffee out in the garden. It attacks the central nervous system of all kinds of insects, but works really well with slugs and snails because it is water-soluble and seems in through the mucus menbranes they rely on.
