Slug Wars
Last year we have a slug problem they devoured a huge amount. This year I thought I'd sow so much more, with the theory being the slugs could have a third of it.
Last night was the first warm night, around 11 deg C of the year and this morning young tomatoes and cucumbers that have been planted in the poly-tunnel have either gone totally or have leaves missing and are covered in slime.
Courgettes I potted up yesterday and left on the floor of the poly tunnel over night have already started losing leaves.
The pots I can move onto a table, but the ones outside under a cloche are devastated.
Luckily slugs don't like onions, or so I keep reading. If you enlarge the photo by clicking on it there is slime all over the soil and half a row of spring onions are almost totally eaten, even the tops of larger ones show damage.
In the courgette bed outside there are 8 beer traps and they have caught one slug last night.
Today, I have just ordered some Slug Nematode. They are expensive and we have too much growing space to use everywhere but I will try some in the poly tunnel.
We have to get on top of this problem because there are only so many pots and so much space to keep plants in pots until they are big enough to face slugs....and I have already reached that point where some things could do with going out.
A row of peas sown direct have also been eaten by slugs just as they poked their heads above the soil and another row of peas that were raised indoors and then transplanted out have now lost most of their lower leaves. Last year virtually all Runner and French beans were eaten.
There are also news stories about slugs being worse this year as the winter wasn't cold enough for them to hibernate causing them to carry on eating and breeding through the winter....
