Each gardener and gardener knows such uninvited guests on a personal plot as slugs. They bother absolutely all gardeners. Slugs are considered the most unpleasant pests. They can destroy the entire crop - this is fruit and berry crops, various vegetables, root crops and even ornamental plants. Of course, slugs can be considered the worst enemy of homeowners. And the question of how to get rid of pests is very relevant for landowners. What is the danger of this mollusk? What slug remedies are best used?
What are slugs?
Slugs belong to land gastropods without shells. Photos of the slug can be viewed in any information publication. The body of the mollusk has three parts: the head, mantle and leg. His skin is thin, bare and always covered with mucus. In the fall of slug, white translucent eggs with a diameter of about 2 millimeters are laid in fertile soil. Slugs are usually active at night, during the day they can come to the surface only in rainy weather or after the rain has passed. The optimum air temperature for them is from 15 to 19 degrees, they also need high humidity. Slugs breathe with their whole body, and high temperatures can cause their skin to dry out. If the summer is dry, the slugs hide in the soil and hibernate. Shellfish can not only damage the crop, but also introduce various infections.
Preventative measures
To reduce the population of slugs, preventive measures must be taken. These include timely plowing of the garden, mowing excess grass, regular removal of weeds and plant debris. A good prophylaxis against slugs in the garden can be considered thinning of plantings, since slugs do not like open areas. There are many plants with a persistent rich aroma that can not tolerate these mollusks. This is lavender, chicory, mint, parsley, garlic. They can be safely planted between the beds and around the perimeter of the site.
Manual collection
Collecting slugs with your hands is an effective method, but quite laborious. It does not require any costs and certain skills, but it takes a lot of time. Slugs can be harvested in the early morning or late evening, as well as after rain. This work must be done with gloves or tweezers.
Folk pest control
There are quite effective folk remedies for slugs that do not contain chemistry. The most effective are:
- soda;
- vinegar;
- mustard;
- needles;
- salt;
- slaked lime;
- wood ash;
- beer;
- ammonia.
Wood ash
Successfully fight slugs helps wood ash. Apply it in the evening (slugs are activated at night) and only in clear weather. Dry ash is taken and crumbles around plants, beds and shrubs. Ash adheres to the wet body of the mollusks and impedes their movement. Usually slugs bypass this place. To improve the effectiveness of this method, slaked lime or ground tobacco (in a 1: 1 ratio) can be added to the ash. Repeat treatment in a week.
Mustard
Many gardeners use mustard against slugs. It is a great helper in pest control. Dry mustard powder is scattered between the plants. And you can make an extract of mustard powder for spraying plants.
To prepare it, take 100 grams of powder, dilute it in a bucket of water and insist for a day. Then add more water - in a ratio of 1: 2 - and add 1/3 of a piece of laundry soap (grated) to one bucket of solution. You can spray flowers and vegetables as needed, shrubs in early summer, and fruit trees two weeks after flowering.
Salt
A simple but quite effective remedy for slugs is ordinary table salt, it corrodes the body of the slug. In the beds between plants, it is better to sprinkle salt on some material (for example, on a film). The fact is that when wet, the salt can dissolve and soak into the ground, this leads to soil salting and can destroy the plants themselves. It is best to sprinkle salt in compost heaps, because slugs often choose such places.
Beer trap
A fairly effective remedy for slugs is a beer trap. Take any container not very small in size, add a little to it so that the edges of the container are flush with the ground, fill it with any beer (not to the brim). If the container is open, an awning must be made from above to prevent water from entering the beer. The smell of this drink is very attractive. Once in a container with beer, the mollusks simply drown in it. Also on sale there are special traps for slugs in the form of a bowl with a lid. Beer changes in containers should be every 2-3 days.
Obstacle course
In the garden and in the garden for slugs, you can make a kind of obstacle course: sprinkle garden paths with fine gravel, and mulch the beds with chopped eggshells or needles of trees such as larch or pine. This greatly complicates the access of slugs to the stands.
Hot water
The most budgetary, but no less effective way to combat slugs is to irrigate with boiling water. For mollusks, hot water is deadly, and some plants, such as cabbage, tolerate a hot shower quite steadily. Water for these purposes should have a temperature of about 60 degrees.
Ammonia
Skilled gardeners in their plots use such a means to combat slugs as ammonia. To prepare the solution, you need to take 1 liter of 25% ammonia, dilute it with 10 liters of water. The resulting product should fill the cracks in the ground, pests can hide there. The beds should be watered with extreme caution, carefully monitor so that ammonia does not get on the leaves of plants. Otherwise, they may get a severe burn.
Assistants
It is good to release poultry, especially ducks, into the garden or vegetable garden in early spring. They are able to eat slugs in huge quantities. If possible, it is recommended to have hedgehogs or frogs on the plot. They are also big lovers of mollusks.
Chemical Remedies
Chemical remedies for slugs are undoubtedly the most effective. But still experienced gardeners recommend resorting to them in extreme cases. Stop processing from slugs should be 2-3 weeks before harvest, so as not to harm your health.
Thunderstorm (Meta)
The drug "Thunderstorm" from slugs was originally produced in Switzerland, it was produced under the name "Meta". For almost 100 years, this tool is the most highly productive and safe. In addition, the drug is affordable. It begins to be used in early spring to save young shoots. Available in small packages of 15 or 60 grams of the drug in the form of blue granules (on the packaging - photo slug). The main substance of Thunderstorm is metaldehyde. The drug acts in direct contact with the body of the slug, as it is intestinal and contact. Granules absorb all moisture, thereby drying the skin of the slug, preventing them from moving on. The slugs themselves eagerly eat the granules and die from poisoning after 2 hours. The drug is valid for about 3 weeks, the shelf life is 24 days. Thunderstorm is moisture resistant and can be used even in rain.
Granules are scattered in areas next to young shoots. Consume 30 grams of the drug per 10 square meters. meters or 15 grams per 5 square meters. meters. To process the area is enough 2-3 times per season. Hazard class - 3 (moderately hazardous substance). Thunderstorm is a very toxic drug for children and adults, as well as for pets. After harvesting, all products must be thoroughly washed, especially if Thunderstorm was used nearby.
Slug Eater
Sludge Eater is an ultramodern drug for slugs and snails produced in Russia. It is sold in the form of granules, in a package on which is printed instructions for the use of “Slug”. The drug protects fruit and vegetables, citrus fruits, as well as flowers and grapes from pests. Highly effective, has a long shelf life, easy to use. The consumption of the drug is 30 grams per 10 square meters. meters. Active ingredient - 60 g / kg of metaldehyde, has the form of granules. Shelf life is 2 years. Granules are scattered along the topsoil between rows, along paths. Before starting work, you should carefully read the instructions for use "Sludge Eater". Precautions must be observed:
- do not carry out drug treatment if children or pets are nearby;
- to use overalls;
- be sure to wear glasses and gloves;
- Strictly observe the storage rules of the chemical preparation;
- Avoid contact with food, drugs, and animal feed;
- Choose storage areas inaccessible to children and animals.
Sludge does not need to be mixed with other substances for chemical treatment.
Superphosphate
Superphosphate is a poison for slugs. When using it, we get a double benefit: plants receive top dressing and get rid of slugs. Superphosphate is a mineral fertilizer obtained by the decomposition of natural phosphates. Phosphorus is the main component of the formula. It is important that phosphorus oxide is in a water-soluble form. This allows you to quickly deliver this component to the roots of plants and provide them with good nutrition. Thanks to this macroelement, plants enter the fruiting period faster, the taste of the crop improves significantly, the aging of vegetables slows down, and the product significantly affects the development of tubers and plant roots. Plants take phosphorus from the earth exactly as much as they need. If the leaves have acquired a dark green color and a reddish tint appeared on them, all this indicates a lack of phosphorus. In order to properly fertilize your garden plot, you need to read the instructions for the use of superphosphate. This mineral fertilizer can be applied to the soil both in spring and autumn, the norms are the same. For lands already participating in crop rotation - 55-70 grams per 1 sq. Km. meter, for processed - 40-50 grams per 1 square. meter. This is a continuous application rate. When planting fruit trees, top dressing will be approximately 500 grams per pit. If this is already a growing tree, you need to fertilize it after flowering, 40-70 grams will be needed for one trunk circle. For feeding potatoes and tomatoes, with continuous application, take about 20 grams per square meter. In sheltered soil when digging 75-90 grams of superphosphate per 1 square. meter is applied along with potash and nitrogen fertilizers. Together with urea, ammonium nitrate, and chalk, superphosphate is not added. You must wait at least a week.