We show whether household remedies such as coffee grounds and beer traps really help against snails and how biological agents can fight the snail plague.
Finally spring is here! The beds are prepared and the first vegetables such as spinach, radishes and onions are already in full growth and the first harvest is eagerly awaited. But there you reckoned without the naked, slimy eating machine. Yes, we're talking about the snail, more precisely the slug.
Nudibranchs are veritable eating machines
Particularly after a mild winter, whole snail plagues can appear in spring. The reason for this is that after a warm winter, not only the frost-resistant eggs survive, but also the adults. If there was also a stronger snail infestation in the last year, an invasion of snails unfortunately cannot be avoided. In damp weather, they come out of their hiding places and set course for almost all vegetable and garden plants, because snails are definitely not particularly choosy. However, if you are given a choice between young and old leaves, the choice will always be fresh and young leaves. For this reason, young plants and seedlings are particularly at risk from snail damage. The feeding organ of the snails, also called radula or rasp tongue, is responsible for the large holes in the leaves. You can imagine the rasp tongue like many chainsaws next to each other. The leaves of our garden plants are then processed with several 10,000 microscopically small teeth. The result is then partly completely eaten plants, where only the leaf stalks remain. Because of their feeding power and unbridled appetite, slugs are often one of the biggest problems in a home gardener's garden.
The slug - an underestimated pest
Nudibranch species include snails from several snail families and therefore nudibranchs are not a uniform systematic group. For preventive and combative measuresbut that is irrelevant, because pretty much every slug is also after our beloved garden plants. On the other hand, snails are usually not a threat because they only eat withered leaves and avoid fresh leaf material. One might assume that slugs are poorly protected by the lack of a shell. However, the slime of some slugs, like the Spanish slug, is so bitter that natural predators like the hedgehog spurn them off.
In addition, slugs are more mobile due to the missing shell and can cover longer distances. Because of this, plants in drier areas are also potentially at risk. Another problem is the sexual behavior of snails. Snails are hermaphrodites and therefore not dependent on sexual partners of different sexes. This is also a reason for their high number of offspring and the frequent occurrence in almost every garden. If you have problems with snails, then you can look forward to a visit from mice, birds, frogs, toads, blindworms and ground beetles, because these animals have the slug or their eggs at the top of their menu.
Preventive measures against slug invasion
Since snails cannot regulate their water balance themselves, they need a moist environment. You can be sure that a slug will only leave its wet hiding place if it doesn't risk drying up. For this reason, more serious feeding damage from snails is only to be expected in damp weather or during the cooler nights. There are countless methods advertised online to keep snails away from your plants. For example, beer traps and copper are recommended. A new agent made from liverwort extract also promises effective protection against slugs. Find out here whether these home remedies are really effective and which measures we can recommend in detail.
Fighting unwelcome snails
The most common means of control is and will probably remain slug pellets. The ease of use is probably what makes it so attractive to most home gardeners. However, slug pellets are not all the same, there are sometimes significant differences in the environmental compatibility of the ingredients. There are now alternatives on the market. These include, for example, runner ducks, which are supposed to fight the snail plague within a few days. In addition to the animal helpers, there are now also biological preparations. That's how it can beHome remedy coffee grounds can be used against snails. There is also a nematode species that targets slugs. If you are interested in fighting snails, whether with slug pellets or biological methods, then you are in the right place in our special article! In addition to the effectiveness of the control agents, it is particularly important to the Plantura team that the agents are not toxic and therefore do not pollute their own garden and the environment.
The following products have proven effective in combating snails:
- Snail barrier: natural product made from ground neem seeds; strengthens the plant and is therefore no longer eaten by pests
- Slug pellets: With natural iron compound; works effectively while protecting pets, hedgehogs and earthworms; compatible with nature and stable in rain
- Order set Beneficial: Tick the desired Beneficial on the order form, send it in and receive it conveniently by post
Tip: Another option for plant protection is Ysos. The herb can not only be used as a spice, but also deters snails and other pests.