True or false let me know

[Alan_Y]

I was speaking to one our allotment holders yesterday, and I commented that his sprouts where still looking good and that they hadn't blown and they where free from white fly.  Flour he said, sprinkle it on when the leaves are damp. It seames to work. He also swears by putting rice down for slugs and ants , he clames it swells up in there body's and it kills them and he also once a month goes around his plot spraying a mixture of vinegar and lemon juice and apparently this keeps cats off as they don,t like citrus or acidity.

Let me know what you think or if you have tried any of the above.

Cheers

Alan :)

[Alan_Y]

[Vez1]

worth a try. I imagine it's the strong smell of the vinegar and lemon keeping the cats away, i can see the theoty behind the rice.
I might give it a try.

[MrsKP]

probably a very silly question, but presumably cooked rice ?  ???

[adam04]

i would say uncooked.   as then its soaks up the mositure inside their bodies...  well that would be how i would imagine it.

[MrsKP]

thanks.  that will give me something useful to do with all the ends of packs that i've got in the cupboard with dubious sellby dates on.  worth a shot.

[adam04]

dont take me for certain though.  im just guessing thats how it would work.

[grawrc]

I'm pretty sure it's dry rice Adam and Mrs KP. It will just soak up any available moisture and expand. COuld be a bit messy though. All those exploded slugs  ::)Yuck!

[Robert_Brenchley]

Surely insects liquidise their food then take the liquid? If I'm right then there doesn't seem to be must opportunity for it to swell up in their stomachs.

[Curryandchips]

With all this unsavoury talk of exploding slugs, is there a risk of this thread being moved to the Watershed ?

[Paulines7]

Wouldn't rice attract the birds?  They could do as much if not more damage than slugs, scratching about to get the rice!   :-\

Ants can be good for the garden, especially in the greenhouse where they can pollinate plants.   :D    I didn't know ants ate rice: do they prefer boiled, egg fried or pilau rice?   ;D ;D ;D

[grawrc]

Robert you're probably right: I was being facetious. probably inappropriate. Sorry. Curry:  ;)I'm sorry my vision was so unattractive.  ;) ;D ;D

[katynewbie]

>:(

The only good slug is a dead one... if it met its maker by exploding, that's just fine by me!!

;D

[kenkew]

Bran does the same thing, slugs love it and has been used for yonks. My father used to mix it with crumbled firelighters. Don't know if they exploded or not....well, 'appen they did if he threw his f*g into the garden...!

[the_snail]

Exploding Slugs  :o

No the best way is to put a little shallow pond on yout plod to attract the toads and frogs.

Put a big bolder so the blackbirds and thrushes can use them as an anvile to bash out the snails  ::)

Put apple halves on your plot to attract the balckbirds and thrushes. Then they will stay and eat the Slugs and snails.

In my opinion ants are good in the garden, but bad in the house. I would never kill a ants nest outside. To stop them comming into your house smear your doorsteps with pennyroyal. This stops them as they hate it.

The_Snail

[grawrc]

We've got two ponds and loads of frogs etc. It does work but only up to a point. We've still got loads of slugs and snails.

[the_snail]

No the best way is to put a little shallow pond on yout plod to attract the toads and frogs.

Whats yout plod  ???  ::)

What I meant was 'your plot'

Must Read Before Posting!  ::) Silly Snail  ;D

The_Snail

[telboy]

I've learned something today. Thanks.

[busy_lizzie]

I haven't heard of these remedies before but they are worth a try.  I usually have a constant cloud of white fly on my sprouts, even icy conditions don't seem to touch them. 

In my home garden you don't see many snails because I am out during the season every night at dusk with a big stick - I show no mercy.   ;D busy_lizzie