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VEGAN FEAST SUBSCRIBERS' COOKING AND RECIPE FORUM>
Problem with snails in organic garden
Val
135 posts
Mar 27, 2006
5:02 PM
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I'm having a problem with snails in my organic garden. We rent a small house with hardly any yard, so all my vegetables are in pots. They were growing very well but I found some snails eating the leaves yesterday (the plants are very small, so basically the snails are eating the whole plant!) I don't want to kill the snails, and was wondering if I could use anything to keep them away from the plants without harming them (the snails).
Also ... do snails eat grass at all ? There's a small patch of grass, and I was wondering if I could just transfer them to the grass. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
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Val
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Bryanna
Owner/Moderator
1511 posts
Mar 28, 2006
12:49 PM
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I'm not a gardener, and we have no snails and very few slugs. I have read that having grass around your garden encourages slugs-- I don't know about snails. here are some articles I have found on snail control. Some may involve kiling them, but they all have some advice about discouraging them, too:
This was the only cruelty-free site I found with a couple of paragraphs:
http://www.veganorganic.net/info4.html
"Physical barriers and tempting the slugs!
The dreaded slugs (and snails) are bound to get any vegan organic grower down. It is very important to try and be as tidy as possible in the immediate growing area. Leaving things lying around, for example, will give slugs a place to shelter. You can take advantage of this by, laying rhubarb leaves on the ground to attract slugs to shelter there - it is then a simple matter to collect the slugs up and move them, especially after dark with a torch.
Bear in mind that slugs and snails have a homing instinct and will return if you do not move them far enough away! Other things you can do are to place a circle of bran around tender plants; copper tape around plants or guttering around beds filled with sharp stone can be effective. For flying pests use physical barriers like netting, fleeces, pop bottles as cloches and collars around brassicas to prevent the cabbage root fly laying its eggs."
http://www.pan-uk.org/pestnews/homepest/slugs.htm
has some advice.
From http://library.livinghome.com/Garden-Guy/Snail-Control.htm
"Check at your local nursery or garden center for strips of copper specially made for use in the garden. Slugs and snails will not cross over the copper barrier due to a slight electrical charge they receive as they attempt to pass over it.
Edge the entire area afflicted with snails with the copper, following the manufacturer´s instructions. Make sure, however, that once the barrier is installed, all the slugs and snails inside the barrier are removed (by hand). —The Garden Guy"
From http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7427.html
"The first step is to eliminate, to the extent possible, all places where snails or slugs can hide during the day. Boards, stones, debris, weedy areas around tree trunks, leafy branches growing close to the ground, and dense ground covers such as ivy are ideal sheltering spots. There will be shelters that are not possible to eliminate—e.g., low ledges on fences, the undersides of wooden decks, and water meter boxes. Make a regular practice of trapping and removing snails and slugs in these areas. Also, locate vegetable gardens or susceptible plants as far away as possible from these areas. Reducing hiding places allows fewer snails and slugs to survive. The survivors congregate in the remaining shelters, where they can more easily be located and removed. Switching from sprinkler irrigation to drip irrigation will reduce humidity and moist surfaces, making the habitat less favorable for these pests. Choose snail-proof plants for areas where snails and slugs are dense. Copper barriers can be useful for protecting especially susceptible plants. Though baits can be part of a management program for snails and slugs, by themselves they don’t provide adequate control in gardens that contain plenty of shelter, food, and moisture.
Choice of plant can greatly affect how difficult your battle with snails and slugs will be. Snails and slugs favor seedlings and plants with succulent foliage and these plants must be vigilantly protected. Some plants that are seriously damaged include basil, beans, cabbage, dahlia, delphinium, hosta, lettuce, marigolds, strawberries, and many vegetable plants. On the other hand, many plants resist damage from snails and slugs including begonias, California poppy, fuchias, geraniums, impatiens, lantana, nasturtiums, and purple robe cup flower, and many plants with stiff leaves and highly scented foliage like lavender, rosemary, and sage. Most ornamental woody plants and ornamental grasses are also not seriously affected. If you design your landscape using plants like these, you are likely to have very limited damage from snails and slugs."
"Barriers
Several types of barriers will keep snails and slugs out of planting beds. The easiest to maintain are those made with copper flashing and screen. Copper barriers are effective because it is thought that the copper reacts with the slime that the snail or slug secretes, causing a flow of electricity. Vertical copper screens can be erected around planting beds. The screen should be 6 inches tall and buried several inches below the soil to prevent slugs from crawling through the soil beneath the barrier.
Copper foil (for example, Snail-Barr) can be wrapped around planting boxes, headers, or trunks to repel snails for several years. When banding trunks, wrap the copper foil around the trunk, tab side down, and cut it to allow an 8-inch overlap. Attach one end or the middle of the band to the trunk with one staple oriented parallel to the trunk. Overlap and fasten the ends with one or two large paper clips to allow the copper band to slide as the trunk grows. Bend the tabs out at a 90° angle from the trunk. The bands need to be cleaned occasionally with a vinegar solution. When using copper bands on planter boxes, be sure the soil within the boxes is snail-free before applying bands. If it is not, handpick the snails and slugs from the soil after applying the band until the box is free of these pests.
Natural Enemies
Snails and slugs have many natural enemies, including ground beetles, pathogens, snakes, toads, turtles, and birds, but most are rarely effective enough to provide satisfactory control in the garden..."
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"To look like a goddess, eat like a peasant." Karen Andres
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Val
136 posts
Mar 28, 2006
3:22 PM
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Thank you for all the information, Bryanna! I'm going to try a few suggestion from the articles.
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Val
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