Slug Pellet Safety ?

[mikey]

mornin' all,
and another 'cracker' of a day

I am concerned about passing poison down the Animal/Creature food chain, i.e. Slug/Snail eats pellets, Frogs/Toads/Hedgehogs/Birds eat dead Slug/Snail ...
Planted out a heap of Lettuce and salad leaves plants yesterday, ground dry as dust so gave a good soaking. All stood up to attention this morning and no slug/snail attacks yet .... that's done it they will be on the march as I post   ;), I guess because the ground is so dry.

I do use the 'Blue' Slug pellets in the Greenhouse beds and in pots in the Greenhouse, but not outdoors anymore (quit 2 years ago when we moved here)

I have never used the Beer/Milk drown em system but will give that a try from today. Copper barriers, friends have told me they are a waste of time and money, Slugs just crawl over them, likewise Egg shell, coarse sand.

Apparently a 'water Moat' works around pots for subjects such as Hosta, but cannot imagine me digging a Moat around the veggie patch  ;D (although working a baby JCB would be great fun if OH did not find out  ;))

I remember a product called 'Sluggit' which was diluted with water and the plants/beds then watered with it .... but I believe this has been withdrawn from the market.

any thoughts/suggestions welcome

Mikey

[mikey]

[emmy1978]

Morning Mikey.

I use cat litter around my hostas and it's the only thing that has ever worked. They weren't completely untouched it has to be said, but at least was only slightly chewed, not vanished!
I'm not sure what I'm going to do on the lottie. My neighbour sprinkles his blue pellets smiling knowingly at me. He thinks it's hilarious that I'm going to try not to use them. The copper rings are useless and seem to trap more things in than keep things out. The problem with copper is it's only effective while it's shiny, so you'd need a lot of it and a regular supply - which i have in gasman OH but don't think it's worth it and too expensive as long term plan.
Beer traps work great, I'm just unsure where best to place them on the lottie.
I'm not edging my beds with timber as the last time i did something similar i created a club 18-30 for slugs. Beer pools and somewhere to sleep it off. I don't think so!
Never heard of sluggit, OH found a product last year that was goopy and apparently slugs hate it. They don't. They just cruise right over it. Gaaagh.
Some one...help.  :)

[Trevor_D]

In a word - Nemaslug! (Biological control - just water them in and the slugs die horrid deaths.)

There's the odd problem, of course:

1 It's not cheap.

2 It only last 6 weeks or so.

So it's not really feasible for a complete garden or allotment. But for small areas where you are planting sensitive stuff (eg lettuce), it's worth it. I did the relevant bits of the garden with one pack a few days ago and will probably do the allotment tomorrow.

I've never found beer traps effective - perhaps my homebrew was too strong for them!

[coznbob]

Put cabbage in last week, lovingly grown from seed, hardened off etc.

3 of 24 have survived after a week, despite eggshells and beer traps....grrrrrrrrrr

[emmy1978]

Eggshells just don't work. Whoever said they did (my friend the liar) is a liar.
Am off to google Nemaslug.

[Barnowl]

We used slug stoppa last year. Essentially it's just something slugs don't like to crawl across. It's a bit like perlite and eventually breaks down. Have to be a bit careful when watering so as not to wash it away, but stays in place during rain.

http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1260

Coffee grounds are also meant to be a good deterrent

[tim]

I still use pellets under netting or fleece. Slugs do not travel more than a few inches after partaking.

[Tee Gee]

I use lime with my brassicas.

I find  ring of lime (not limestone) around the plant helps the plant and the slugs & snails don't seem to cross it

[allaboutliverpool]

I agree with Tim. pellets are ok in frames etc., and if you have raised beds like me things can be protected by netting while they are at their most vulnerable.

[manicscousers]

we don't use blue pellets, we go down the slugstoppa line..but, a tip I picked up on the allotment show..chinese takeaway packets, you know the clear plastic box with a lid..pierce a small, slug size hole in the side, put the pellets in, put a stone on top to stop it blowing away..the theory is the slug creeps in, eats the pellet and dies, no frogs etc can get to them..never tried it, but ?

[greenstar]

We use Growing Success Advanced Slug Killer pellets which seem to work a treat and, according to the packet and other reviews I've read, don't harm any other wildlife, including the frogs that may eat them.  They're made from ferrous sulphate, whatever that is.  We ordered them on line, but apparently you can get them at B&Q.

Does anybody else use these, and does anybody know if they are as harmless to wildlife as they say they are?

[emmy1978]

Ferrous sulphate is iron!

[simon404]

I use the pellets under a container trick (I use margerine tubs). The slugs die inside: no danger to birds.

[wilko]

my dad's friend, said he used sulphur, but i suppose that wouldn't do the other wildlife much good either  ???

[Melbourne12]

We use the blue pellets.  Our lottie is alive with frogs, birds, and hedgehogs.  We even have a resident mole.  So, I admit unscientifically, I conclude that the blue pellets are OK.

[Tee Gee]

I try and find where they sleep it off during the day in my case it is a hedge and an ivy covered wall.

I put a line of pellets along the base of the hedge/ivy and they have a feed either on there way out at night or on their return in the morning.

I have been known to place a plank of wood supprted sufficiently high enough for them to crawl under and place my pellets under this.

Either way it beats spreading them all over, plus they are easier to collect for disposing of!

[janet h 1948]

Last year I saw a tip somewhere on the boards. Cut a hole in the side of a plastic ice cream carton, put the slug pellets inside, put the lid on & hey presto all the wild life is safe. It worked, there were loads of the things in the box.