As autumn brings damp weather and fallen leaves, slugs are out in force. But, fear not, there's a simple, pet-friendly solution to keep these slimy pests at bay. Gardeners should be vigilant now, checking under pots and decaying foliage where slugs, fresh from breeding season, seek refuge.
While the go-to slug deterrent often involves chemical pellets, experts warn against this method due to its potential harm to pets and wildlife like birds and hedgehogs. However, Jane, a green-fingered guru and the brains behind Snap Dragon Life , stumbled upon a natural slug repellent that also adds a splash of colour to your garden , reports the Express . Jane revealed her accidental discovery: "I planted out my rows of carefully nurtured seedlings - cornflowers, marigolds, poppies, cosmos, nigella, snapdragons.
Within two days the slugs had eaten everything but the snapdragons. Slugs don't like snapdragons." How do snapdragons keep slugs away? Snapdragons are a gardener's secret weapon against slugs, boasting slug-repelling chemicals that are harmless to humans.
With their low moisture content and tough texture, snapdragons make gardens seem barren to slugs, encouraging them to move on. Planting snapdragons proves more than just a treat for the eyes; they act as defenders in your veggie patch. Nestling them next to slug-favourites like lettuces and cabbages, or dotting them along pathways and fences helps keep the leaf-munchers at bay.
What else stops slugs from eating plants? Beer trap technique But if you're waging war on slugs, Jane's got a trick that'll get you winning - the beer trap. She advises: "Slugs love beer, any beer, even the terrible beer that people bring to parties, even failed home-brew. Save small jars or pots (single yoghurt pots work fine) and bury them up to their necks between where the slugs are likely to be living and your plants.
" This boozy method involves filling jars with beer to entice the slugs away from your plants, leading them to an inebriated demise they can't escape from cheap, simple, and diabolically effective. Cereal trap technique No ale? No problem. Cereal can save the day.
Getting a little fermented outside, it becomes irresistible to slugs. Jane dishes the dirt: "The only thing better than beer in the mind of a slug is cereal. They can't resist it.
Rather than using piles of bran which can get messy, I use cheap own-brand Weetabix-type cereal and again place it between the slugs and the crops." You can trap slugs using a deceptively simple technique involving cereal, reveals a seasoned gardener. Jane shared her odd, yet effective method: "This is the way that I dealt with slugs in my first garden - logging the numbers in a weird serial killer-y garden notebook.
"I stopped counting when I got past 4,000. It is less messy if you combine it with the Weetabix technique. Simply leave the Weetabix for three days and then go out at night and collect up all the Weetabix that should by now be covered with feasting slugs.
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