Slugs and snails are attracted to the yeasty smell, and will drown when submerged in alcohol. Yeast and water can also be used to attract
Two key things attract slugs: food and moisture. Unfortunately for gardeners, just about every plant – vegetables and flowers in particular – can serve as food for slugs. They are definitely not picky eaters! Any area that stays moist during the day or during lengthy hot spells will be attractive to slugs.
Slugs love beer, milk, and most sugary and yeasty liquids, and are attracted by the smell. It's easy to make a beer trap – just sink a shallow pot, like an old yogurt pot, into the ground at the edge of your crops, and fill with beer. The slugs will be attracted to the trap, sup the beer, and drown.
Scent. Slugs seem also to be put off by the strong scent of Lavendula (Lavender), Rosemarinus (Rosemary), Foeniculum vulgare (Fennel) and Phlox paniculate (Perennial phlox). There are so many plants that slugs simply can't stomach. In fact, that you could plant your entire garden with slug-hated plants.
Cucumber slices, soaked oatmeal, and oatmeal are good baits, too. Melon or orange peel with some fruit leftovers inside also attract slugs. In general, you could observe what preferences your slugs and snails have. If you use several traps in your garden, it is easy to study how attractive different baits are.
One easy and inexpensive way to get rid of slugs is a beer trap. Create one by burying half a container near vulnerable plants and half filling it with beer. Alternatively, look out for purpose-made beer traps. The scent of the beer will lure slugs, which then fall in and get stuck.
Slugs and snails go crazy for citrus or melon rinds, small piles of oatmeal or bran, moistened dry dog food and of course shallow pans of beer. Any of these under a board will really provide a slug gathering spot.
There are a handful of plants which are believed to be a natural repellent for slugs. What you need: Slug repelling plants “ Living Green suggest that wormwood, rue, fennel, anise, and rosemary are the best slug repelling plants.
Try beer traps
Make a slug trap using cheap beer – slugs will be attracted to the smell. Sink a beer trap or container into the ground, with the rim just above soil level. Half fill with beer and the cover with a loose lid to stop other creatures falling in. Check and empty regularly.
Coffee grounds have been recommended in the past as an organic method to keep slugs and snails out of your flower and vegetable beds. Grounds will repel slugs, but the USDA research team confirms that a caffeine solution is more effective.
A spray bottle filled with plain white vinegar is a great cure for slugs that aren't on plants. An extremely effective mollusk dissolver, vinegar is also an herbicide-so don't spritz the salvia. 15) Or Garlic. New research has shown that garlic kills slugs.
On a similar vein, Vicks jelly is also said to work well. Admittedly quite messy to apply, but if placed around the rims of your pots of plants, the stuff should last all season long… probably best not to move them around too much after smearing jelly all over them!
Just like using beer, the slugs will be attracted to the sugar in the soda and lure them into the bowl. The slugs will then find their way into the sugary drink and suffer a death comparable to drowning in acid.
How did I get snails and slugs? Moist plant debris, underneath rocks, low weeds, mulch and fallen logs all provide hiding places for snails and slugs. Moisture is a key requirement for snails and slugs since they are adversely affected by dry conditions and the loss of body moisture.
Garlic, Lawn Chamomile, chives. Some plants repel most slugs and snails and these may have a deterrent effect when planted alongside or used to make an extract. Many gardeners swear by garlic as a natural pest control. Some say chives are effective it the leaves are tied around vulnerable plants; sounds fiddly.
Most slugs feed at night, and the slime trails, if present, can alert you to the level of activity. Damage is usually most severe during warm humid periods. Slugs can make a meal of a wide range of vegetables and ornamental plants, especially seedlings and other soft growth.
If you're wondering why you keep finding slugs in the house, it's because they have an amazing sense of smell. They may be attracted to food in your kitchen, pantry or even pet food.
The Grazers Slug & Snail Deterrent formula is applied directly to the foliage of plants, where it is absorbed by the leaves. This means that it provides longer lasting control, protecting your plants from damage caused by slugs and snails for a prolonged period of time.
Epsom salts, though, are an effective control method. Epsom salts contain magnesium, which is a nutrient most plants will utilize. Applying a band of Epsom salt around your beds or plants will work as a slug barrier.
"Sharp grit, ash and bark can help to ringfence your plants, and most slugs will not cross over the barrier. Wood pellets, cat litter and coffee grounds are other mulch materials you can try.
Slugs avoid crawling over anything dry, dusty or scratchy, such as lime, diatomaceous earth, cinders, coarse sawdust, gravel or sand. These make great barriers to keep out slugs. Epson Salts sprinkled on the soil will help deter slugs and also help prevent Magnesium deficiency in your plants.
Slugs are very sensitive to ambient temperature and can detect temperature changes as gradual as 2°F per hour! Slugs prefer to remain at 17 to 18°C (62 to 64°F) although they lay eggs and develop normally (but slower) at lower temperatures. Development ceases below 5°C (64°F).
It takes about a year for slugs to mature into adults, which can live for about two years. Slugs can be serious garden pests, eating seedlings, plants and fruit and vegetable crops.
While slugs are slimy and damaging to plants, they are not poisonous to humans. However, some of them may carry diseases and parasites, such as the rat lungworm, that can be dangerous to other animals and us.
Slugs and snails are very important. They provide food for all sorts of mammals, birds, slow worms, earthworms, insects and they are part of the natural balance. Upset that balance by removing them and we can do a lot of harm. Thrushes in particular thrive on them!