Every gardener and gardener is familiar with such uninvited guests on the plot as slugs. They worry absolutely all gardeners. Slugs are considered the most unpleasant pests. They can destroy the entire crop - these are 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. Why is this mollusk dangerous? What are the best remedies for slugs?
Who are slugs?
Slugs are land gastropod mollusks that do not have a shell. Photos of the slug can be viewed in any information publication. The body of a mollusk has three parts: head, mantle and leg. His skin is thin, naked and always covered with mucus. In autumn, slugs lay white translucent eggs about 2 millimeters in diameter in fertile soil. Slugs are usually active at night, during the day they can come to the surface only in rainy weather or after it has rained. Optimum air temperaturefor them - 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 bring various infections.
Preventive measures
To reduce the population of slugs, it is necessary to take preventive measures. These include timely plowing the garden, mowing excess grass, regular removal of weeds and plant debris. Thinning out plantings can be considered a good prevention against slugs in the garden, since slugs do not like open areas. There are many plants with a persistent rich aroma that these mollusks cannot tolerate. These are lavender, chicory, mint, parsley, garlic. They can be safely planted between the beds and around the perimeter of the site.
Handpicked
Collecting slugs by hand 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 collected in the early morning or late evening, or 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 chemicals. The most productive are:
- soda;
- vinegar;
- mustard;
- needles;
- s alt;
- slaked lime;
- wood ash;
- beer;
- ammoniaalcohol.
Wood ash
Wood ash helps to successfully fight slugs. Apply it in the evening (slugs are activated at night) and only in clear weather. Dry ash is taken and scattered around plants, beds and shrubs. The ash sticks to the wet body of the mollusks and makes it difficult for them to move. Usually slugs bypass this place. To improve the efficiency of this method, slaked lime or ground tobacco (1:1 ratio) can be added to the ash. Re-treat in a week.
Mustard
Many gardeners use mustard against slugs. This is a great helper in pest control. Dry mustard powder is scattered between plants. And you can make an infusion for spraying plants from mustard powder.
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.
Table s alt
A simple but effective remedy for slugs is ordinary table s alt, it corrodes the body of the slug. In the beds between plants, it is better to sprinkle s alt on some material (for example, on a film). The fact is that s alt, when wet, can dissolve and soak into the ground, this leads to s altingsoil and can destroy the plants themselves. It is best to sprinkle s alt on compost heaps, as slugs often choose such places.
Beer Trap
A rather effective remedy for slugs is a beer trap. Take any container of not very small size, dig it a little 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, it is necessary to make an awning on top so that water does not get into the beer. Slugs are very attracted to the smell of this drink. Once in a container with beer, the clams simply drown in it. Also on sale there are special traps for slugs in the form of a bowl with a lid. Change the beer in the container 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 will make it much more difficult for slugs to access the plantations.
Hot water
The most budgetary, but no less effective way to deal with slugs is irrigation with boiling water. For shellfish, hot water is deadly, and some plants, such as cabbage, tolerate hot showers quite well. Water for these purposes should have a temperature of about 60 degrees.
Ammonia
Skillful gardeners on their plots use such a tool 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 be filled with cracks in the ground, pests can hide there. The beds should be watered with extreme caution, be careful not to get ammonia on the leaves of the plants. Otherwise, they may get severely burned.
Helpers
It is good to release poultry, especially ducks, into the garden in early spring. They are able to eat slugs in large quantities. If possible, it is recommended to have hedgehogs or frogs in the garden. They are also big shellfish lovers.
Chemical remedies
Chemical slug repellents are by far the most effective. But still, experienced gardeners recommend resorting to them in extreme cases. Slug treatment should be stopped 2-3 weeks before harvest, so as not to harm your he alth.
"Thunderstorm" ("Meta")
Groza, a slug drug, was originally made in Switzerland under the name Meta. For almost 100 years, this tool has been the most highly productive and safe. In addition, the drug is affordable. It begins to be applied in early spring to preserve young shoots. Available in small packages of 15 or 60 grams of the drug in the form of blue granules (on the package - a photo of a slug). The main substance of "Thunderstorm" is metaldehyde. The drug acts by direct contact with the body of the slug, as it is intestinal and contact. The granules absorb all the moisture, thereby drying the skin of the slug, preventing them from moving further. Slugs themselvesthey eat pellets with desire and die from poisoning after 2 hours. The drug is valid for about 3 weeks, the shelf life is 24 days. The preparation "Thunderstorm" is moisture resistant, it can be used even in the rain.
Scatter the granules in areas next to the young shoots. Spend 30 grams of the drug per 10 square meters. meters or 15 grams per 5 sq. meters. It is enough to process the area 2-3 times per season. Hazard class - 3 (moderately hazardous substance). "Thunderstorm" is a very poisonous 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
"Slug-Eater" is an ultra-modern preparation for slugs and snails produced in Russia. Sold in the form of granules, in a package on which instructions for the use of "Slug-eater" are printed. The drug protects fruit, berry, vegetable, citrus crops, as well as flowers and grapes from pests. Highly effective, long lasting, easy to use. The consumption of the drug is 30 grams per 10 square meters. meters. The active substance is 60 g / kg of metaldehyde, it has the form of granules. Shelf life - 2 years. Scatter the granules over the top layer of soil between rows, along the paths. Before starting work, you should carefully read the instructions for using the "Slug-Eater". Precautions to take:
- do not treat with children or pets nearby;
- use overalls;
- be sure to wear glassesand gloves;
- strictly follow the rules for storing the chemical;
- avoid contact with food, medicines, and animal feed;
- choose storage locations out of the reach of children and animals.
Slug Eater does not need to be mixed with other chemical treatments.
Superphosphate
Superphosphate is poison for slugs. When using it, we get a double benefit: the plants receive top dressing and get rid of slugs. Superphosphate is a mineral fertilizer obtained from the decomposition of natural phosphates. Phosphorus is the main ingredient in the formula. It is important that phosphorus oxide is in a water-soluble form. This allows you to deliver this component to the roots of plants much faster 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 roots of plants. Plants take exactly as much phosphorus from the earth as they need. If the leaves have acquired a dark green color and a reddish tint has 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 using superphosphate. This mineral fertilizer can be applied to the soil in spring and autumn, the norms are the same. For lands already participating in crop rotation - 55-70 grams per 1 sq. meter, forprocessed - 40-50 grams per 1 sq. meter. This is the expense for continuous application. 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 per trunk circle. For feeding potatoes and tomatoes, with continuous application, take about 20 grams per square meter. In protected ground when digging 75-90 grams of superphosphate per 1 sq. meter is applied along with potash and nitrogen fertilizers. Together with urea, ammonium nitrate, and chalk, superphosphate is not added. You need to wait at least a week.
