Kitchen Garden Forum

I've just come in from my first slug hunt of the year and have caught 946 mainly slugs but quite a few snails too.

They are mainly on Aubretia, irises and ornamental alliums, onion family in general really as they were also on the Egyptian onions and Welsh ones too.

They've also made a meal of the clematis. I'm going to have nightmares about them. It's a wonder I've any plants left at all.

I've taken them for a walk and tipped them into a wooded area from where hopefully they won't come back, and I won't have deprived the Song Thrushes and hedgehogs of a meal.

It is quite funny walking past drunks coming home from the pub and me wearing rubber gloves, carrying a torch and a bucket of slugs!!! I'll be getting talked about.

Hello plumpudding,
Is that all!!! how far is the wood? I've heard their like homing pidgeons!!
I can see you offering the drunks a snack!
We have had severe frosts keeping them quiet but its become milder,bye, I'm off outside with my litter picker!

Hi oxalis, I've just had a quick look tonight and can't see any. It is bitterly cold here today with a strong easterly wind, so they don't seem to be coming out. I'm sure I haven't caught them all. It was quite wet last night, and the wind has dried things out today so it won't be so inviting.

I've had three more slug hunts this week and have caught over 300 each night, and last night being warmer and wet brought out the most enormous snails I've ever seen - golf ball size. Wonder what they would be like with garlic butter? Ugh.

Anyway, while I was at the Harrogate Spring Garden Show on Thursday I bought a packet of Nemaslug - enough to treat 100 sq metres - for £10, which is about half as much as I paid for some last year. I find it good for killing the keel slugs that lurk in the soil. So war is declared.

Reminds me of a snail hunt I had a few years ago. Dumped them all in a nearly shrubby footpath and I swear they were all back again by next morning. Next time I'll smash their shells and put them on the bird table for the birds.

Hi Plumpudding,
You might be interested to know that the New Advanced Slug Pellets have Organic Accreditation.
The new stocks have Organic flashed across the front and are accredited in the UK.
I feel that Nemaslug is an exceedingly expensive way to only partially control slugs.
Just think how much it would cost me with a 5 acre plot to use Nemaslug. Nowadays I only use a minute fraction of the plot but equal to about 4 allotments.
JB.

Plumpudding

What a waste of good food

I wish I could get hold of huge snails - unfortunately my ducks eat them all.

Here's how to prepare and cook them CLICK HERE

Thanks for the recipe Alan but I rather think I'll settle for the roast lamb that's on today's menu. It's the dropping live creatures into boiling water that brings out the coward in me. Do confess - have you ever collected and eaten them?

Primrose,

I must confess: no. But, as I said, the ducks eat them all. I wouldn't worry about cooking snails; I'm quite prepared to kill chickens.

Thanks for the recipe, I may just give it a try if I can bring myself to plunge them into boiling water, although I would think cooking them for 40 minutes would make them a bit tough. Someone once gave me a plate of winkles to eat and it was like chewing car tyre.

I did catch some beauties last night - golf ball size again. I'll let you know if I'm brave enough to cook some.

Talking about organic slug pellets, I tried some of the ferric sulphate or is it sulphide ones and the slugs wouldn't touch them. What is the magic ingredient in the new organic ones you mentioned?

Hi Plumpudding,
The Ferric Phosphate ones are the ones I am talking about and they work here so perhaps they work over time. I certainly had a reasonably slug free year last year when I trialed them from the information supplied by Mole. I didn't trust them with my Carrots last year but this year I have. So far so good. I have a slug search every now and then on the paved and concrete areas only and simply sprinkle salt on them. Snails get the boot treatment.
Last night there were an awful lot of slugs out and about. They were about the only thing that had a good year last year so this year there is bound to be thousands and a few more!
JB.

Who has the best price for these? Quick search suggested Wilko - they are online so I guess in the shops too.

Hi Geoff,
They sell them in Morrison's Supermarket but I didn't note the price. Last year they were £3.15 in the supermarket but I went to a local shop known for it's bargains and got a supply at £1.55 as there was a special offer going at the time. This means there must be quite a mark-up on the product so prices can vary quite dramatically. As for your area I'm afraid I have no idea. Perhaps Monika might know.
JB.

Sorry, I don't, Johnboy and Geoff. We did go to LBS Garden Warehouse at Colne today, but that was before I saw this query. In any case, although, LBS is brilliant on all things plastic and other garden sundries, I don't find them particularly cheap on fertilisers and other "chemicals". Have you tried the place at Todmorden, Geoff? Our main source of potting composts, fertiliser, slug killers etc (all very reasonable!) is the trading hut of the Keighley Horticultural Society (annual membership £1.50, trading hut open Sundays 10 - 12noon). You'll find it through Google on the Bradford DIVA site.

Geoff wrote:Who has the best price for these? Quick search suggested Wilko - they are online so I guess in the shops too.

I got some in home bargains 89p 'doff' is the label,