Topic: Slugs & Co

[Ozzy]

This year has been odd,,,, hardly seen one and those I came across... only a few were spared death by scissors on a stick... but me spuds?????  not only wireworm but keel slugs and they is well tiny.. now last year I tried the coffee thing as recommended by Hugh Jones... everything sound.. no damage to root crops and no detrimental (see I can use big words too) effect on me veg (would I know any diff?).. but this year no coffee and is bad bad bad day in spud land.... the keel slugs appently have made it easier for the wireworms (which is a larvae of the click beatle, use to like the beatles i did.. yeah yeah yeah) to get it on in me maris pipers.. now I know i is repeating meself here... but if you. like me, have just turned over a lawned or overgrown area... then thse babies are a sure to come a calling... defence is to keep cultivating and in theory will take 5 years to eradicate/control... another method is to spike a spud on a stick.. sink this into the ground and.. lure the lil fellas into the spud then lift and burn/dispose.. all my spuds are up now and I have done the spud on a stick.. okay stable door and all that, but they really do cause loads and loads of damage... I had a spud as big as ya like and when peeled was left with a small roaster... is the power of the wireworm...

anyways is really me only bit of advice i can give.. cept.. the coffee.... think it is top defence against against slugs.. speshly the keel slug... I remember first time around I just sprinkled coffee granuals on top onf me soil.. then Hugh kindly gave me his formula and I swear I saw slugs leaving the area...  if this helps brill... if its just babble... soz...


oz

 :-* :-*

[Jesse]

Ozzy, what's Hugh's formula?

[Ozzy]

Soz jess

should have said...... now I think I have this right....

cheapjack coffee... 50g to 2 gallons of water....

make the coffe up with boiling water and add to 2gal watering can.... is best i can do Jess... hope Hugh Jones is around... he done this real in depth thing paying attention to such things a scirrosis etc... realty do wish I could give decent weight behind the theory.... but all I know I done the coffeee thing and I really did see the  slugs and snails migrate.... my 2gal watering can done an area 12ft x 8 ft...  is best I can do Jess.... hopefully Hugh will do his voodoo here and enlighten us all.... honestly recalling last season I really was overwhelmed by them.... then Hugh put me right about the coffee and the problem stopped untill this year when i didnt use cofee... so deffo somat innit innit...

Oz

 :-* :-* :-*

[Hugh_Jones]

You have it exactly right Oz.  Don`t apply it until the spuds (or whatever) have finished growing, then make sure to soak the soil thoroughly.  It`s particularly useful when you`ve removed the potato haulm and are waiting 3 weeks to lift the spuds, or when your maincrop carrots have finished growing and you`re going to leave them in the ground.  Depending on the weather the treatment works for a few weeks (wet weather) to a couple of months.

It doesn`t kill the slugs, but they cannot abide caffeine and simply b*gger off elsewhere.

[Jesse]

What is the reason for not using while the plants are still growing? Reason I ask is that I was thinking of it as a solution to keep the slugs away whilst my flower and veg seedlings are getting big enough to survive the slug onslaught. Will it kill growing plants?

[Hugh_Jones]

If applied to young plants the coffee solution described often causes chlorosis and can considerably inhibit growth. It can be used (with great care) around (but NOT on) some established plants (it was very successful in keeping slugs off my hostas), but, after a lengthy series of experiments with carrots, I concluded that the best uses of the coffee are:-
(a) To clear the ground of slugs several weeks before sowing,
(b) As a barrier surrounding the bed to prevent slugs re-encroaching, and
(c) When a rootcrop (potatoes, carrots etc.) has matured and is simply awaiting harvesting, as a soil drench protection.

[thifasmom]

If applied to young plants the coffee solution described often causes chlorosis and can considerably inhibit growth. It can be used (with great care) around (but NOT on) some established plants (it was very successful in keeping slugs off my hostas), but, after a lengthy series of experiments with carrots, I concluded that the best uses of the coffee are:-
(a) To clear the ground of slugs several weeks before sowing,
(b) As a barrier surrounding the bed to prevent slugs re-encroaching, and
(c) When a rootcrop (potatoes, carrots etc.) has matured and is simply awaiting harvesting, as a soil drench protection.

Hi everyone just came across this very old post and was wondering has anyone been successfull using this method and Hugh says several weeks before sowing, i was thinking approx 3 weeks ???.

i am thinking of using this method to rid the soil prior to planting out my juicy seedling next growing season.

[Hyacinth]

I use it at the beginning of a season 'mom..I've kept Hugh's original trial post and I'll have a look for it and re-post. Keep yer peepers peeled 8)

Lishka

[Hyacinth]

Hugh's trial...I bless him for this!

Carrots, Slugs and Coffee Hugh Jones - 897th post - 21 Aug 2003 09:45
Way back in the mists of time (April I think) I promised to publish the
results of my experiment this summer using Instant Coffee as a slug
deterrent, and in case there are any contributors from those days still
around (and still interested), here they are.
The experiments were carried out over 4 sections. Section 1 was the control
bed, and received no treatment whatever. The other 3 sections were all
watered with the coffee at normal (for me) drinking strength, which equated
to 50 grams per 2 gallons of water, a month before sowing - the idea being
to clear all slugs out of the soil before sowing. Germination in all 4
sections was excellent to the point of embarassment.

Following germination, the soil around all of sections 2 & 3 and the
surrounding soil were again treated. Section 4 was Not treated, but the soil
surrounding it was. All the seedlings grew equally well in all 4 sections,
but after a few weeks it was apparent that those in Section1 were being
cropped by slugs while those in the other 3 sections were not.

A month after germination Section 2 was given a further treatment, Sections
3 & 4 were not, but the soil surrounding all 3 sections was again treated.
Following this second treatment the plants in Section 2 began to show clear
signs of chlorosis and took several weeks to recover. Those in Sections 3 &
4 and Section 1 all continued to grow normally, but those in Section
1continued to show further slug damage (several roots were badly damaged)
while those in the other 3 sections showed few signs of slug activity. A
further treatment of the soil surrounding the beds, but not of the Sections
themselves, was carried out at the end of July.

Roots lifted from all four sections show that Section 1 have quite a lot of
damage, Section 2 are undamaged but are very much smaller, Sections 3 and 4
are comparable in size with Section 1 but show very little slug damage.

The conclusion is that the best effects will result from treating the bed
several weeks before sowing to clear slugs, and then using the treatment on
the soil surrounding the bed at periodical intervals to prevent further
incursion, with (perhaps) just one treatment of the bed post germination. As
I always leave my carrots in the ground over winter I shall treat the plants
themselves in late September, when I have already found that the plants are
not affected by the treatment

[thifasmom]

thanks so much for your lovely trial results, it has been very helpfull and i have book marked it for future reference. i will look out for when you re-post the original post, i will also look for it myself. i will definitely try this next season.

[Hyacinth]

......that WAS Hugh's original post!  ;D

I've had it bookmarked all this time - invaluable, it is 8)

[thifasmom]

oops :-[ had a bit of a duh moment :-[ thanks again for posting it :)