GARDEN GOSSIP

The slug is the Al Capone of the animal world in most gardens, public enemy number one. Even if you can't actually see the fat slimy body, there is no doubt where it has been. The silvery trail of slime and line of plants cut down in their prime tells the whole sad story. A slug's appetite is voracious. In 24 hours he can munch up to 40% of his own body weight. The slug wanders about until it finds some food, and once he finds something palatable, he'll probably stay there grazing until dawn. On the following night, he's able to follow the previous night's slime trail back to the same grazing site. And what is worse, other slugs can also pick up this trail, and the result tends to be a concentration of slugs on certain 'victim' plants or patches of the garden. There could be as many as 200 slugs in each square yard of your garden, so if you see one you can be sure that his friends and relatives are not far away! But the good news is that he'll slow down in cold weather.

The slug doesn't actually chew your plants. He licks them to death. His tongue is long and horny, and has thousands of teeth on it. He doesn't chew so much as rasp back and forwards, just like shaping a piece of wood with sandpaper. When one 'tooth' wears out, another one quickly grows in its place. And although I've been calling slugs 'him', they are actually hermaphrodites; the best of both worlds; which means that any passing pair have astounding reproduction potential and could produce up to 90,000 grandchildren! That's the size of the problem. So, how can we get rid of these monsters.

Basically, there are two ways, the 'green' way and the 'violet' way. Why call it the 'violet' way? Why not? But it so happens that in the circle of colours, violet is diametrically opposite to green. There is only one 'violet' way, and that is by using poison - slug pellets. Metaldehyde slug pellets will make the slug produce an excess of slime and the poor dear dies of dehydration. Methiocarb pellets are a bit more direct, and act as a stomach poison. If you do use these popular poisoned baits, take great care if there are dogs, cats or wildlife around.

If, however, you are a 'green' gardener, you have several options, namely biological control, direct action, or applying a deterrent. The biological way is to use nematodes, otherwise known as eelworms. This is the best method if you have animals. Nematodes are microscopic worm-like creatures that burrow into slugs and spread a sluggy disease that finishes them off in a few days. You can buy them freeze-dried through the post. Simply open the packet and add to a watering can, then water the resulting 'eelworm soup' evenly over the ground. However, you have to wait until the weather warms up because if the soil temperature is below 6C, nematodes die of hypothermia. And once they have arrived through your letter box you must use them pretty smartish. No going off on holiday first, or putting them in the shed and forgetting all about them.

Direct action is a way of beating the beast at his own game. He is a night feeder, so you must become a night hunter. Go out into the garden on a warm, dark, humid night, armed with a torch and you can pick them off your plants in huge numbers with your bare hands (or gloved hands if you are a bit squeamish).. Disposal is up to you; either into a bucket of salty water, or bagged as a banquet for local frogs, hedgehogs, moles, shrews, rooks, starlings, blackbirds, thrushes and ducks. If that seems too much like hard work, you can always try trapping them. Grapefruit halves are a traditional trap and they seem to work very well, but quickly dry out and need regular renewal. So you have to like grapefruit for breakfast to keep the supply going. Lengths of wood give the slug a place to sleep during the day. Simply inspect the undersides regularly and remove the slug as he sleeps. Or you could set up a slug local. Sink a shallow container into the ground and fill it with beer. The beer attracts them, intoxicates them and annihilates them. The liquid should last for two or three nights unless it gets watered down by rain. You don't have to buy anything special; slugs are just as happy with flat lager as they are with real ale. And if you are one of those people who always drains a glass, or do not touch alcoholic beverages, try a packet of dried yeast in a small quantity of water with some potato peelings. Scrumptious!

Which just leaves deterrents. There is a well tried-and-tested method of keeping slugs away from their favourite food. It involves placing gritty stuff, like sharp stones, prickly leaves or even broken eggshells, around precious plants. Whether or not this is really effective I am not sure. I do know that when a slug finds he is moving over something that makes him uncomfortable he lays down an extra layer of slime. A slug can pass over the sharp edge of a razor blade totally unharmed, so why should a handful of grit stop him in his tracks? However, I am informed that placing old coffee grounds and tea leaves around a plant does keep the slugs away. Apparently slugs do not like caffeine! There is also another form of barrier which I have heard is quite successful, though it can't be used to protect things planted in the open ground. You can buy strips of self-adhesive copper which can be fixed round pots or the legs of greenhouse benches. These apparently produce a small electric voltage when the slug touches it, which gives him a slight electric shock which is too uncomfortable for him when he tries to cross it, even if he is ravenous.

A slug will happily munch his way through hostas, dahlias, chamomile, sunflowers, snapdragons and marigolds, to name but a few. He is not so partial to rosemary, oregano, pulmonaria, lavender, helianthemums or arums. You could fill your garden with such plants. But who wants to grow plants which are not necessarily of their own choice just because slugs don't like them? But it is either that or wage a constant war against them. So keep a good look out for any of those signs of slug presence; that slime trail or nibbled plants. Clear away any unwanted pots, old plant material and anything else that might give slugs a nice place to sleep during the day out of the hot sun, unless of course you're using them as traps as part of your elimination campaign. You can then play around with various methods of control and see which works best for you and your garden.

Happy Gardening

Bill Hutchings