Topic: Slug eggs question

[Digeroo]

I keep finding piles and piles of slug eggs around the lottie, hundreds and hundreds of them.   If they all turn into slugs there will be a total wipeout next summer.

How do you get rid of them?

[chriscross1966]

Normally if you leave them exposed then either the birds eat them or the frost kills them....

[Digeroo]

Thanks Chris I will try searching them  out.  I have been using quite a lot of straw.  Bales have been protecting my courgettes, and used as mulch.  Seems the downside is that slugs see them as the perfect nursery.   One rotting bale can contain huge numbers of eggs.

It has been much drier in previous winters and so this has not been an issue before.

I think the hedgehogs like them as well.  The robin does not seem that keen.

[goodlife]

It was record year for slug and snail numbers..and I fear it will be repeat next year. Regular disturbance of the surface soil will bring lot of the eggs into daylight and they will be distroyed by the 'fresh air' and as mentioned, birds will find them tasty snack.

I've been preparing my beds into winter for last few days...and keep finding such a quantity of slugs.. ...never seen anything like it!...SO,...I shall start saving my pocket money and next spring I will treat the whole lot with nematodes...desperate times requires desperate measures, and it is slug war out there!

[Digeroo]

I have never tried nematodes but I think you are right next year will be a good time to give it a go.

The first couple of years at the lottie was bliss no slugs at all.

Came across this article on how to producing your own nematodes. 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/gardeningequipment/8675592/The-war-on-slugs-starts-at-home.html

 A bit disgusting but needs must.

[pumkinlover]

I love money saving tips! This is a really good one, it would also be a good tip to pass on when in "polite" company!!  They think I am  bonkers at work already.

[Digeroo]

To treat 10 rods with nematodes every six weeks would cost about £130.  Doing it for nothing would be great indeed.

I don't even mind buying one small packet if I can use it as a starter.   The whole thing cannot smell worse than comfrey or nettle tea.

[goodlife]

 

The whole thing cannot smell worse than comfrey or nettle tea.

Ohh..the 'famous last words'.. Lets hope so...

[pumkinlover]

The whole thing cannot smell worse than comfrey or nettle tea.

Ohh..the 'famous last words'.. Lets hope so...

What's wrong with the smell of comfrey or nettle tea?

[manicscousers]

Well, I'm going to have a go in spring, can't be any more unpleasant that beer traps , horrible slime

[goodlife]

In spring we could do step-by-step post about it...it would be nice to get some slimy photos from different people and reports how we get on....how about it?..sort of group experiment.

[Stevens706]

When I find batches of slug eggs, using gloves I pop them, it’s so satisfying just like bubble wrap, every popping sound is one less slug. Small pleasures.

[small]

Am I the only person who finds this idea cruel? I kill slugs, yes, but with one snip of the secateurs, I really don't like the notion of sealing them up in a jar to die a slow death from disease....

[Nigel B]

So what do they taste like, these eggs?
You might just be worrying about how to get rid of some free protein.
Thinking logically for a second or two, Its no  like its poo or anything nasty like that.
Give them a go, you never know. They might even taste like chicken.

I think I'd cook them thoroughly though. Wouldn't want to catch Snailmonella.

[Digeroo]

I really do not fancy eating slug eggs.  I am not an MP on Get Me Out of Here.

[Esplanade]

wouldn't it be simple and humane - if thats the worry - to just pour boiling water over them?

[CDave]

Does the DIY approach work? This article suggests not. I did buy nematodes last year and found plenty of slugs in my garden with the tell-tale swollen back - which suggests that they are infected. I did notice a derease in slug numbers but in addition, still resoted to my usual night time walks with a torch and knife (to cut em up) and traps. Suppose that its a combination of methods that works best?
http://nurturing-nature.co.uk/slugs-snail/home-made-slug-killing-soup-a-case-of-well-intentioned-pseudoscience/
 

[Digeroo]

Thanks for posting this link.   It does seem logical that when the nematode treatments are so expensive, that is unlikely to be able to be simply brewed up in a bucket.

Yet the original is in a mainstream newspaper by a reputable gardening expert.   I wonder what checks were carried out to ensure the validity of the method.  Has Toby Buckland personally try it out?  Or it is the nematode treatment which is a load of expensive tosh?

Found this thread on Grow your own,

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/grapevine/weeds-pests-diseases/making-your-own-slug-nematodes-anyone-tried_64107.html

Seems Goodlife is right and the smell is awful, but seems there might be a cause for cautious optimism.

I like the idea of adding slugs to comfrey tea brew, a terrible smell might just mask an even worse one.

[CDave]

Forgot to mention - I also lay some rotten timbers around my patch - the edges of raised beds (on the inside) are ideal - old bits of pallet wood do the job. Its surprising how many slugs and snails hide under the wood. Disposing of them and re-laying the wood is then easy. Beats buying beer and grapefruit! The wood is transportable to different parts of the lottie too.

[Melbourne12]

Leave them for the birds.  Best of all, borrow a couple of chickens for the afternoon from a fellow allotmenteer.