Anyone who takes care of vegetable gardens knows well that certain agents can be quite harmful — and annoying, by the way. Insects, fungi and other living organisms are the main destroyers of plant species. Another extremely uncomfortable situation is finding slugs on the plant .
Slugs are molluscs, relatives of snails and snails (which are basically slugs with shells on their backs). They belong to the same group as aquatic animals, such as octopuses and squids. There are even slugs that live inside the seaweed.
As peaceful and harmless as these animals are, they can be very harmful to our gardens. Slugs on plants are often synonymous with eaten leaves and damaged roots. Therefore, they are considered nightmares for many gardeners and landscapers.
So, how to get around this situation? How to identify and exterminate slugs in the garden ? To have these and many other questions answered, stay with us until the end of the text!
Identifying lemmas in plants
The first step in solving your plant slug problem is to identify the slugs. After all, slugs are known to be slow moving animals of significant size. However, for some people, it might turn out not to be as easy as it seems.
This is because this type of animal has nocturnal habits. That way, during the day, they end up hiding under stones, vases or even behind garden ornaments. Therefore, if you suspect that there is a slug on the plant, you will need to lure the slug out of hiding.
There are several home methods to get slugs to leave their shelters. The first of them is to create traps with chayote (yes, the vegetable), which is a food very appreciated by the animals. Another way to make bait is to soak burlap bags in beer.
The slugs will be attracted and that way it will be easy to identify and remove them from your plant. It is important, however, to remember never to touch them without protective gloves, as the little bugs can transmit diseases.
Bet on prevention
When we talk about gardens, this popular saying takes on even more meaning. This is because, many times, when we are faced with a problem in our backyard, it may be too late to work around it. Therefore, it is important to always be one step ahead.
In the case of a slug on the plant, the situation can end up getting out of your control overnight. That’s because this animal is hermaphrodite (has male and female reproductive apparatus) and reproduces at an accelerated rate. These molluscs can lay up to 400 eggs per year.
In this way, it turns out to be very easy to come across an infestation of slugs in the garden. Thus, before understanding how to get rid of slugs , it is important to learn how to avoid scenarios conducive to the reproduction and development of these invertebrate animals.
Start by thoroughly cleaning the area where your plants are located (pots, flowerbeds, vegetable gardens or gardens). It’s important to remove as much debris as possible, as rocks, twigs, and loose leaves are where slugs most like to lay their eggs.
Some natural elements, such as plant remains and weeds, can even serve as food for molluscs. It is worth noting that rubble, such as bricks and wooden boards, are also great hiding places for pets. So remove everyone from your garden.
In addition, it is worth mentioning that humid environments are more conducive to the emergence of animals. Therefore, do not overwater your plants or allow water to accumulate around the garden. Following these steps, you won’t have to worry about how to eliminate slugs from your plants.
Ending the problem!
If you haven’t paid attention to the precautions above, surely you must be wanting to know how to kill slugs , right?. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to get rid of unwanted clams from your green corner.
The biggest enemy of these little animals is, without a doubt, salt. You can create salt barriers (or even baking soda) to keep slugs away from your plants. Just be careful not to over-salinate the soil, as this could be harmful to the garden.
You can also enlist the help of homemade insecticides that have an effect on slugs or even natural predators. Barbecue embers are also good options, as they dehydrate the animals and are less harmful to the soil than salt.