Oh, my!

I loved those slug stories, even though I hate the slugs!

Thanks!

Let's all use the nontoxic product Sluggo. No wierd sex, no gnawing off body parts, no slime, no screams, and no more slugs.

I used to have the creeps crawl into my home, also they grazed all my seedlings. I bought some Slug and Snail bait/killer at Wallmart, and followed the instructions. No more creeps.
Good luck

Unfortunately, common brands of snail bait are quite toxic to other animals and not good for the environment at all. Here's what can happen to dogs:
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_snail_bait_poisoning.html

That's why most organic gardeners use Sluggo (or the same thing is called Escar-go at Gardens Alive). It is nontoxic, period.

Thank you for that great laugh. I read both sites and laughed so hard I nearly fell out of my chair.

My four-year-old son came in and asked what was so funny.

Not sure what to tell him.

:^O :^O :^O :^O

You are correct, but my wife was desperate to clear the house. I bought some half inch welded wire, dug a shallow pit placed a saucer in the pit, filled it with the bait, then fashioned the wire into a dome and secured it over the bait. It worked for me.

Salt is a poor choice as well, if you are considering the environment. Sodium + chloride = BAD; and it is definately not good for your garden unless you are growing mangrove trees.

Get some ducks! They really go through the yard and even stir up the soil with their bills looking for critters.

I LOVE MY DUCKS!!! I should have got some years ago!
They eat weeds and scurry through the soil for bugs.
My ducks haven't been too messy as far as leaving deposits where we walk.

Like everyone else, I've suffered the effects of slugs. While I don't love it, I've had a slug for pet (scientific inquiry, it's called), and perhaps for that reason I'm more tolerant. I can't abide the thought of killing something in a horrorific manner, like cutting it in half or pouring salt on it and watching it suffer to death.

Anyway, a few years ago I read about a gardener in California, I believe, who was revolted, disgusted and appalled by the huge banana slugs that he was sure were responsible for destroying, well, everything. He killed them whenever and however he could. A few years later, he learned that it was not the banana slugs that were responsible for the decimation he had experienced, but rather another, less obvious, slug. He felt really bad about waging war on a creature that was not responsible for the damage.

There's a lesson here somewhere, and one organic gardeners had better be aware of: Be sure you know the enemy before you try to destroy it.

Hi there!
It's been awhile since I posted on this one, since it's January & the slugs are hiding somewhere...

I don't like to see them suffer, either...how do they die with the organic stuff???
Must do SOMETHING TO THEM...
But tell me again....

WHAT, EXACTLY, IS THE PURPOSE OF SLUGS?
Or mosquitoes, or flies...etc????
Help me out here....
Vicki

My Slug Solution

This method of eliminating slugs is not for the weak of stomach. All those who have a weak stomach can now cover their eyes while they read the rest of this post.

First, you'll need a few things.
1. About 4 bottles of beer
2. A pair of hot pink duckies
3. A flashlight
4. A pair of sissors

First you drink two of the beer and put the duckies on. You then go out to the garden late at night with the flashlight, sissors, and the other two bottles of beer. Look around the yard for slugs. When you find one take a big swill of beer and decapitate the slug with the sissors. Take another swill and move on. I should also mention here that if the neighbors call the police, be prepared to be vigoroulsy questioned.

I've gone out some nights and got over a hundred of the little critters in less than an hour. It works if you're interested in getting numbers. I've tried all the other methods and only get maybe a dozen on a good night. That's not enough when you're surrounded by woods like I am. Over the years I've had fewer and fewer slugs. Now I hardly bother with the few that are around unless they get BIG, ....or I want to drink beer.

It works for me and, I swear, if it doesn't work for you, you can dip my fanny in sweet cream and squat me in a kitchen full of kittens.

....or pick them up and throw them in the neighbors yard.

Hey Boos...
Good story...I know I can drink the beer, go outside...& look for slugs...but when it comes right down the the cutting part...I'm not sure..

I guess it depends on how many there are, and what damage they're doing...

Maybe a couple shots of tequila would help my courage level?

I also like the "throw them in the neighbor's yard", idea!
Thanks!

Okay, this is NOT a defense of slugs.

But, actually, slugs, mosquitos, flies, poison ivy, etc., all do have a purpose.

Mostly they're food. Of course, that begs the question, Why do they have to be so repulsive?? LOL

Mosquitos and poison ivy have a very special purpose: protecting sensitive lands. Poison ivy moves in where Mother Earth has been injured, and covers her with a protective blanket that says, "Keep Off! I'm trying to heal!" It's like Mama Earth's antibiotic bandaid.

Mosquitos thrive in wetland areas that are Earth's personal cleansing houses, and they protect these areas against encroachment better than any brand of thorns could do. Of course, they don't protect her against DDT, alas. We *are* finding ways to defeat even Gaia's vast array of defenses.

Just felt like I should throw that in.

Heather

Hi heatherhead,
That's very interesting, especially the poison ivy...but what about flies?
Dontcha just LOVE the maggots in the summer?

And WHO eats slugs? I have never seen a bird try to eat them...I think they're too disgusting for them...I have thrown them out to the watching birds, and they just say "YUCK" & go for the better stuff!

I've heard that ducks eat them, but I have never had ducks, so I don't know...
Thanks for the input!
Vicki

Booswalia, I used your method, minus the beer (don't like beer), for years. I used a pair of scissors that was only for slugs. Nowadays I just use the nontoxic bait Sluggo.

We live on a corner, and are in an urban neighborhood, so even at night people would walk by. I felt compelled to tell them what I was doing! When even the street people/druggies look at you like you're crazy, you feel pretty embarrassed.

Yes, the slug sissors. They have their own slime coating to protect them from the rust. :^O