- Some people have used talcum powder, lime, or wood ashes as a barrier. However, if using ashes, don't let it touch the plants. Landscaping materials that may discourage the pests, include wood chips, sand and gravel.
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.
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.
"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.
Some gardeners swear by homemade snail and slug repellents. This are made by mixing garlic or coffee grounds into water in a spray bottle. Spray down your plants with this mixture, as well as the ground around the plants to deter slugs and snails.
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.
Create a prickly barrier
Slugs are soft-bodied molluscs so sharp, prickly barriers are a great way to deter them from precious plants. Use crushed egg shells, pine needles or thorny cuttings to create barriers and recycle unwanted leftovers and foliage. Another great material to use is sharp sand.
Some birds, frogs, toads, hedgehogs, slow-worms and ground beetles eat slugs and these predators should be encouraged in gardens. Raking over soil and removing fallen leaves during winter can allow birds to eat slug eggs that have been exposed.
4. WD-40. To deter snails in your container garden, you can set up barriers around your plants or their containers. For example, you can spray a band of waterproof WD-40 around your containers, and the snails and slugs will be unable to climb up it.
In my experience, the best way to harness it is by purchasing large containers of powdered black pepper or chilli from Asian supermarkets and sprinkling it generously around affected plants.
Pest Deterrent: Pre-steeped bags are a great way to rid your garden of slugs, bugs, and rodents: just sprinkle the wet or dry leaves directly onto the soil. According to Tip Hero, the caffeine also deters pests from eating, nibbling, or peeing on your garden turf.
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.
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!
Try copper
Copper rings can be effective slug deterrents – if a slug tries to cross one it receives an 'electric shock', forcing it back. Put rings around vulnerable plants such as hostas – bury them deep as slugs may reach the plant from underneath.
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.
Slugs and snails hide in damp places during the day. They stay under logs and stones or under ground cover. They also hide under planters and low decks. At night they come out to eat.
Add a few drops of washing up liquid (only a few drops, you don't want a soapy mixture). Pour boiling water over the chilli and garlic and let this all sit overnight and infuse. The next day all you need to do is to strain the liquid and pour it into a spray bottle. You can now use this spray to treat your plants.
Trish (Tauranga): "Make a small flat container out of tin foil and put three or four slices of cucumber on it. The cucumber and tin foil together seem to give off an unnoticed smell that slugs and snails don't like. I put a couple of little holes in the bottom so they don't collect rainwater."
Keep Pests Away
Sprinkle baking soda on your soil with a flour sifter to keep ants, roaches and slugs away from your garden. (Be sure to avoid your plants!)
Some predatory beetles and lizards feed on them, but birds and rats are the most effective. Small pointed snail. Ducks, chickens or guinea fowl can provide effective, long-term control in orchards, vineyards and gardens and the biggest problem in using birds is protecting them from foxes.
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. 2. Epson Salts sprinkled on the soil will help deter slugs and also help prevent Magnesium deficiency in your plants.
But a new study shows that some species of sea slug are able to not only survive decapitation, but also regenerate entirely new bodies after splitting from their old ones. The study, published Monday in Current Biology, shows that autotomy is stranger and more extreme in the animal kingdom than previously thought.
Yes, Vaseline does deter slugs. If applied around the circumference of a pot it will protect the plant within. This is because Vaseline's greasy texture is very difficult for the slugs to climb over.
One way to kill snails and slugs during manual collection is to drop them into a bucket of hot soapy water. Or, a container with salt – which will also kill them. With plain cool water, they will simply crawl back out.
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.