Advice needed, please! I've been warned that land that's used for the first time in ages can be a real problem with under the ground small slugs eating potatoes, also heard it takes 4-5 years of using the land for the problem to ease up!
The land has been unused for years, although it was rotovated last year and covered with black ground cover. I know the 'answer' is to use slug pellets, but I don't want to kill things. I have also already bought and am chitting my potatoes, and read about resistant types only afterwards (only one of my varieties that I have is said to have some resistance (doh!)).
Are there any tried and tested methods to help the problem that I just don't know about? One other thing, lots of books seem divided on black ground cover, some saying it's great for warming the soil up prior to planting, others saying they harbour pests such as slugs. Should I take the ground cover off now to give it a month without, or will this not make the slightest difference? Apologies for all the questions, just don't want to lose my crop if I can help it. Thanks.
The normal probelm on fresh ground is Wire worm, the larvae of the click beetle.
I don't think there are any way to control them but they do move away after 3 or 4 years.
You will also suffer from slugs, but that is on both fresh and old ground. Most slugs operate under ground and you don't really see them. Pellets don't help much I am afraid but the nematode control can work though it is less effective on heavy ground.
I am on clay and did try it with mixed results. I have not bothered for a couple of seasons.
I know use the weak coffee solution. Buy as much cheap nasty coffee from the supermarket as you can, make this up into a solution similar to weak tea without milk in colour and water your crop 3 or 4 times during the growing season, more if it rains a lot.
The slugs do not like the caffeine and vacate the area, or so the theory goes. It does seem to help.
If you are near a coffee bar such as Costa, Prete Manger, etc they may also give you their left over grounds and these can be spread over the crop and will have a similar effect I believe.
HTH
Jerry
Hiya Clay
I had problems with sluggies and spuds last year, and did a bit of research on it as well as asking board members for suggestions of slug-resistant spuds on this post:
http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/joomla/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,57/topic,11992.0 (http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/joomla/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,57/topic,11992.0)
Kestrel was the most suggested option. I also found T&M's web site/spud catalogue good for going through the basic virtues of lots of varieties including their slug resistance.
If you combined slug resistant spuds with Jerry's coffee method you might limit the slug damage??
Last year I put soot and sand in the spud trenches and didn't get one slug :)
Thanks ever so much sandersj89, moggle and trixiebelle... fantastic ideas and more inventive than I was expecting! Definately will take it on board and hopefully by combining all three ideas my potatoes will be slug-free. Although, if I'm feeding them coffee, does that mean I won't be able to sleep at night?!
Thanks again. ;D
P.S. Sandersj89, was looking at your allotment blog the other day, really lovely plot you have and your cornflowers made such an impact, inspired me to get a pack for this year. :)