Slugs are a common problem in flower beds and agriculture environments. Their soft bodies are prone to desiccation. They are forced to retreat to moist areas in order for their bodies to retain moisture. Some species of slugs eat living plants and can cause serious damage to flower beds, bushes, fruit trees, etc. There are many ways to get rid of these bothersome slugs!

Homegrown Methods to Get Rid of Slugs

A beer trap can be made from a can of beer and any tall glass jar. Dig a hole near where you think the slug is dwelling. The hole should be the same height as your glass jar. The mouth of the jar should be even with the ground around it. When you have it even, use dirt to fill in any gaps between the sides of jar and the ground. Fill the jar about a third of the way up with a can of beer. The slugs will be drawn to the beer, fall into the jar, and drown to death. Mix one tsp of baking yeast, one tsp of sugar, and ¼ cup of water as an alternative . Use the same procedure as above, just replace the beer with the yeast mixture. In my experience, I have found this to be the most reliable and easiest way to get rid of slugs.

A rotten head of cabbage also makes a good trap. Pull a few leaves off of a head of cabbage that has turned brown and is beginning to rot. At dusk, place the leaves where you are having trouble with your snails. About an hour latter, you should see plenty of slugs eating on the cabbage leaf. You can be kind and just smash them, or you can pour salt on them and watch them melt away. Salt dehydrates slugs and they will die within minutes of being doused.

Dampen a fallen tree limb or wooden board. Just make sure that if you use a tree limb, it makes full contact with the ground underneath it. Slugs flock to places that are enclosed with moisture. If there is too big of a gap between the ground and the limb, the slug will not be interested. Set it near your problem area. Lightly dampen the ground surrounding the limb or board. The next morning lift up the limb or board and discard the slugs.

Using Natural Predators

Frogs, birds, and turtles are natural predators to the slug. If you have an enclosed area that has a slug problem, you can put a turtle inside the area and it will eat all the slugs. Setting up a water fountain will attract frogs to eat the snails. Set up bird feeders near your problem area and the birds will do the rest. Borrow or buy a live chicken, duck, goose, etc.. and they will hunt out and eat your slimy pests for you.

More on Those Slimy Little Creatures…

Slugs are nocturnal. They do all their feeding at night when they are shielded from the damaging sun rays. So, if all else fails… get a flashlight, tongs, and cup of salty water out. Wait until after dark and hand pick them. Throw them in a cup of salty water to finish the job.

Slug tape is a self adhesive copper tape that you can strategically place around areas that you don’t want a slug to go. The copper reacts to the slime produced by slugs and deters them from crossing it. Copper rings work under the same principle. A solid thick line of broken egg shells can also provide a barrier. The snails cut their tender bodies as they try to cross the egg shells and will turn away from them. While the egg shells and copper will not kill or get rid of existing slugs, it will keep new ones out.