E W ’ S
P L A N T I N G
Slugging it out with the slimy critters.
lugs and snails, the bane of Oregon
gardeners, were the subject of an
engaging exchange of e-mail last
fall between members of the
Eugene Permaculture Guild. Forget oyster
shell, diatomaceous earth, and, perhaps,
hand-picking slugs, unless you find it per-
sonally satisfying. (With snails, though, PP
finds hand-picking remarkably effective.)
Spearing slugs with a skewer seems to be an
especially popular variation, although DH
commented, “Slugs in tight places some-
times slip off a down-facing skewer. Try an
upward curve as a semi-hook.” To which Q
responded, “you are such a meany, David.”
EZ, a Buddhist, eschews killing. She
reported gardening in raised beds made of
Trex. “When they were built, they had cop-
per strips attached on the outside. The strips
are about one and a half inches wide, and
maybe four inches from the top of the bed. I
think perhaps the copper has some effect.
It’s hard to know for sure.” She added,
“Learn to recognize snail and slug
eggs. They are a cluster of perfectly
round things, like alive tapioca
S
By Rachel Foster
pearls. They will be in the soil, about three
inches down.”
An interesting method,
new to me, came from
JH. Apply a 1-inch
barrier of red wheat
bran around each
plant. “The slugs
and snails go after
this yummy
sub-
G U I D E
2 0 0 5
stance and then seem to desiccate.” Apparently
the bran is inexpensive at feed stores and easy
to work with. It needs to be reapplied after
rains or when it cracks. She adds, “I store it in
the bag in a metal trash can. Be sure the lid is
tight.” The bran idea won a quick endorse-
ment: “I got the suggestion from Jude’s per-
maculture class two years ago and have had
great results.”
What about those supposedly earth-
friendly iron phosphate pellets? As DH
pointed out, “NCAP’s staff scientist,
Caroline Cox, thinks Sluggo’s [probably]
OK. She’s very conservative and rarely rec-
ommends any registered pesticide prod-
PHOTO BY ROBIN. B. CUSHMAN
uct.” And PP said “I have personally had
pretty good control using Sluggo, but I feel
most people do not use it correctly. It is
applied quite sparingly and preferably not
right on top of tender young plants.”
Then there is the carnivorous approach:
snails can be captured, fattened up and eaten.
Alternatively, let ducks and chickens run free
in the garden during the winter and spring.
They’ll eat slugs as well as slug eggs. Protect
anything already tender and green. As PP
commented, “Ducks ... adore all garden
greens and are best used in a fallow garden,”
and also, “Garter snakes are great on mol-
lusks and encouraged in our garden.”
Two more thoughtful contributions
from PP: “Be sure not to kill our
native slugs and snails. They
cause little garden damage
and belong in the forests.
When making a pitfall trap or bait
trap for slugs, please DO NOT
put the opening level with the
soil...... you will be killing
beneficial beetles such as ground
and rove beetles, both of which feast
on slug eggs and tiny slugs.”
My own thoughts? Like
many gardeners I know, I snip
the poor brutes in half with my
Felcos. And like EZ, I try to keep a
dry environment. As for copper strips,
I learned somewhere that they need to
be new and shiny to provide the shock
that makes them effective, and about 2
n
inches wide.
Thanks to Elaine Zablocki, Jude Hobbs, Pat
Patterson, David Hoffman, Jewel, jenya, Char,
“Qwerty” and kc anton.
Doak Creek
Native Plant Nursery
Native Containerized Plants, Trees, Shrubs,
Ground Covers & Wildflowers
484-9206
By Appt.
83331 JACKSON MARLOW RD. • EUGENE
MARCH 3, 2005 21