Discipline is key in the fight against slugs

We are often asked: ”Do you have a problem with slugs?” and the answer is: “Not really, but we do have slugs in the garden and very few in the polytunnel.”

It is important to understand the enemy, before deciding on a remedy.

90 percent of all slug problems in the garden are caused by the Spanish slug (Arion vulgaris), pictured above. The green, yellow and black slugs are not a problem as they mostly feed on decaying matter. Snails, like the Garden Snail, like the Garden Snail and the White Garden snail are quite harmless. If you don’t believe this, it is very educating to spend an hour at night in the garden with a torch and observe slugs and snails.
In our experience the most susceptible plants are some lettuce varieties and brassicas (cabbage, kale).

Slug control takes first of all discipline, discipline and discipline and a bit of common sense.

Natural predators like frogs, runner beetles, hedgehogs and birds will be on your side.

To prevent a slug problem there are a few key actions:

Keep grass around your garden beds short.
Tidy up any possible hiding places (pots, boards, mulch etc.).
Water only in the morning.
The following barriers work in our experience: 3-5cm wide copper strips, gorse twigs.

That is the discipline bit and here is the common sense approach:

Always raise plants in modules and plant out as sturdy “teenager” plants, not as “baby”-seedlings. If slugs attack, the plant will most likely survive and you can take action.

To catch slugs:

Identify slug hot spots
Lay out traps for slugs like boards, sheets of plastic in problem areas and pick up in the morning.
Torch and bucket (the Spanish slug is most active 90 minutes after sunset and one hour after sunrise)
Beer traps (in our humble experience better than slug pellets, but rain will dilute the beer and craft beer is expensive!)

Maintenance (again discipline is important)