| Is there anything that can be used in or on the ground before planting to help stop the damage from slugs? |
| There are commercial slug baits that can be used, there are also traps which can be baited with beer or fermenting yeast. You can catch some with citrus rinds or by laying boards flat and checking the undersides in the morning. Early in the season, while nights are still frosty, it seems helpful to disturb the soil to expose overwintering slugs and baby slugs to the elements, and to examine mulch for any pockets of slug activity. You can also hand pick them at night when they are active. Finally, and this is very effective at protecting transplants and plats such as hosta that slugs adore, you can encircle plants with a protective band of diatomaceous earth (horticulture grade, not the kind for swimming pools) applied according to the label instructions. I hope this gives you some ideas. |
