Depressed - slugs are evil

[mysticmog]

Planted out my gherkins and courgettes that were looking lovely and big and healthy last week, under fleeces, in a wood edged raised bed, all tucked up nice and cosy.  Went to check on them yesterday and all I have is 1 courgette and alot of stalks... :'( :'(

I've left the fleece off now as it doesnt seem worth
I guess this'll be slugs then...best way to get rid of them?  Nematodes?  Beer sunk in containers?  Flame thrower?

Any advuce gratefully received....

[mysticmog]

[Doris_Pinks]

Mystic, comiserations :(  Wood around raised beds does tend to act as a good hidey place for thew little loves >:( (well it does at mine anyhow!)
Flame thrower could be good! Has happened to me before, one day a lovely row of beans, next day nothing :'(  I have tried the nematodes, but have to say that I didn't notice a vast difference, but then I do garden on heavyish soil which they say they do not like.(and it was fairly expensive) Have also done the beer traps, these I find work quite well, but you do have to keep emptying the carcasses, (well they were happy when they went!) and you get some strange looks from the offie when you ask for the cheapest beer for your slugs! :o Have also tried grit around plants, they seem to pole vault over this, but I had less damage!  So now what I do is wait till my plants are quite big, grow a few extras for my hippo sized slugs, which I keep at home, put a collar around, from cut up pop bottle, throw round grit or eggshells, and put in beer traps!! (cover all bases!)  They do manage to get a few, but I usually win out in the end..tis WAR I tell ya!  Dottie P  (oh and a pair of secateurs for when you see the little darlings!!)

[Mrs Ava]

Oh Mysytic, so sorry.  :'( I have just posted a similar moan in the 'shed'.  I lost all of my melon seedlings to a slug and a snail.    >:( Dunno what to suggest, use pellets and you will attract slugs and snails from far and wide, nematodes are a good option, altho a touch pricey for my palate, beer traps or rough stuff to deter them.  I hope there is still time to resow as I am going to, so I would say, get some more going and stick them under pop bottles to start with, to get them going, then out by torch light looking for the b*ggers!

[Dunc_n_Tricia]

Slugs are definitely evil - spawn of the devil and they look like it!

Last year was our first year with a lottie, and we were given three courgette plants by the soc. chairman. We surrounded each little plant with crushed up egg shells, and watered in a bit of weak coffee (no milk or sugar!).

Didn't have any trouble with slugs, so it seemed to work.

You might want to try sowing some more, as I don't think it is too late - and you can't let the slimy ones win. Chin up  ;)

:-* Tricia

[ALAN HOWELL]

Sorry to hear that,personally I don't think you can beat a few slug pellets scattered about having made sure that there is nowhere close by your beds that will harbour these pests of course.I have an allotment and had a lot of slug and snail problems until we cleared all the likely breeding/hiding places.We do still have a small problem however but the pellets do the trick there.......Alan

[derbex]

They're evil little s*ds.

I have surrounded my nibbled courgettes with eggshells -which should keep them off. If my brain had been working this early in the season I would have planted the cougettes in a ring cut from a plastic bottle, and filled the ring with eggshells or 'Slugstoppa' or one of the other non-toxic things they like to crawl over. This seems to keep them off the stalks and the plants grow. Note to self do the cucumber tonight.

Other than that beer traps work a bit, but seemed to do best in conjunction with night patrols to pick them up and get rid of them. Not the best thing to be doing just before bed, especially as they seem to have enlisted the daddy longlegs as ariel support  >:(

Nematodes seem to cost more than the crop is worth!

[philcooper]

Slugs don't tend to take on good healthy plants but will go for newly planted, sick or otherwise weak specimens.

I have lots of slugs on my allotment and use 2litre pastic bottles cut in half to protect newly planted specimens for a week of two. This seems to protect against the slugs and gives the plants a boosted start

Phil

[gillianbc]

I had great success with the nematodes last year - on heavy clay too - but they are expensive.  I have just used them again this weekend so fingers crossed.  I also find that if you put an old compost bag on the ground, the slugs congregate there during the day and you can collect and dispose of them.  My problem is the snails - I have loads of all different kinds and though the nematodes seem to discourage them, they aren't a cure.  Any tips most welcome.

[aquilegia]

Gillian - I have loads of problems with snails too. Slugs don't seem as bad as they can't climb, so I put susceptible things in pots. But snails...

I collect them. Much easier and more pleasant that slug collecting. I now know all their regularly hang outs and collect them up regularly. They seem to like hanging around under large-leaved plants for the shelter and damp. My sedums and foxgloves seem to be firm favourites.

When collected, they go in a plastic bag which is securely tied at the top and then the bag goes in the bin. I'm a wuss - I can't bare to squash them (although I did stamp on one after I found the remains of my sunflowers).

[philcooper]

I have a flat roofed double garage and lots of black birds and thrushes, so snails get thrown onto the roof where, I hope, the birds will benefit.

[Mrs Ava]

Okay, this thread has encouraged me to make a couple of dozen drinking bottle collars to go around my various squashes and sunflowers when they go out in a couple of weeks time.

[cleo]

I`m not that keen on beer traps as they kill benficial beasties as well as slugs and snails,but if you do want to use them nip down to the local and get the slops.

I would be a good idea to have a drink there from time to time though ;)

Stephan

[philcooper]

Where?

From the beer traps or in the pub?
:D

[derbex]

Don't get too nasty -it's dad might come round!

http://www.cartoonyhusband.homestead.com/files/slug.gif

[Mrs Ava]

hehehehe ;D - every gardeners nightmare huh!  ;D

[Wicker]

I'm like Aqui, I collect the snails and either throw them over the fence into the verge of the walkway which borders our site(I know they probably come back  ::) or put them in a bag with the rubbish for the tip.

Today my 3 year old granddaughter was with me she thinks snails are the cutest thing alive and when on the lottie she walks around constantly with one on her hand showing everyone who will lsiten how it smiles when it comes out to "speak" to her.  It began to pour which meant the "poor snails will get wet and get colds and their mummies will cry" so we had to go round putting them in shelter under a box - still hopefully they'll still be there tomorrow when I go back to dispose of them!

[ptennisnet]

Thanks for the ideas.  We're to weedy to kill them, so it'll be into the green wheelie bin with 'em, where they can munch as much as they like.  
The council did a wonderful thing giving us the green bin - it's taken all the tap roots this year.

[Multiveg]

Stick some of them in the cool compost heap where they can do some good  :o

[Doris_Pinks]

Or when you have collected all your snails, do as we did a few years back on Mum's 70th, have a snail race! Daube some paint on the shells, draw lots of circles on a piece of board and watch em go!! OK so it was a long race....but that made for more hilarity! Wonder what the neighbourhood thought seeing snails in their gardens in varying colours!! :o (well we had to let them go, they had worked for their freedom!)  Dottie P

[aquilegia]

Would snails drown in deep water?

My as yet unlined pond filled up a bit in all the rain over the last few days, so I threw any snails I found yesterday into it. Would they just crawl out or would it actually kill them?