by Terri Bradley

Gardening is a favorite pastime for many here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest where we have a mild and rainy climate that allows vegetation to flourish, overgrow and remain green almost all year long.
However, cool, cloudy days, fallen leaves and moist soil conspire to create the perfect breeding ground for slugs and snails.

We Hate Slugs and Snails. Here’s why:

Slug Damage on Potato Plant

Slug damage on Rhubarb

No doubt you hate slugs and snails too.

But PLEASE don't use commercial slug bait.

It is poisonous to children, pets and wildlife!

Last year I planted a great little garden. As soon as I had a nice crop of young cabbage, lettuce and broccoli, the slugs chewed it up. So I put slug bait around the garden in disposable cups.
Commercial slug bait is very attractive to birds, animals and insects.
It killed our squirrels and a whole family of raccoons.
It probably also killed birds, bees and other wildlife that I wasn't even aware of.
It did not get rid of the slugs and I still had a big slug population this spring.

My daughter and her family almost lost their beloved Shih Tzu when he ate some poisonous commercial slug bait.
He had to spend the night at the Vet Hospital on IV's and almost died !!!!

I am SO done with poisons and chemicals.

Here is how I made my own
ORGANIC
slug and snail traps.

>It is very easy, inexpensive and can be made with items you
probably already have in your house or garden.
>It is absolutely safe around edible crops.
>It can be used in Organic Gardening.
>It is harmless to children, pets, livestock and wildlife.
>It is incredibly fast and effective.

Just follow these simple directions:

Start with two stacking containers.
At least one of the containers should have holes in the bottom.

They should not be too big. One or Two cups capacity is plenty.

I used these empty flower pots.

If both containers have holes, as mine do, line the bottom container with plastic, like a sandwich baggie.

Set the second container inside the lined one.

Plant your container in the garden. It should be fairly flush to the ground so slugs can climb right in, but don't worry, they will happily figure out how to get into your organic trap.

Set out several traps.
Set them where you see slug damage; tuck them right up under the
leaves, or in any damp, shady spot.
Remember these traps are safe for crops and pets.

Now pour beer into your traps.

Slugs do their dirty work at night so wait until the coolest time in the evening. That way you won't lose too much of your beer to evaporation in the heat of the day.
Here you can see an intoxicated slug floating on top.

The reasons for using beer are, first of all it is completely harmless.
It can be used on Organic Farms.
It won't kill anything except slugs and it won't poison your crops.
It is very attractive to slugs.
The slugs will fall in, become intoxicated and happily drown. They will not die or drown in Koolaid or any other sugary mixture, plus sugar attracts ants and bees.
So beer is perfect.

The next morning check your traps. Simply lift the top container and the beer will flow out revealing the spoils of your overnight slug-hunting expedition.

The first night I put out my traps I caught more than 50 slugs.
Here you can see about 15 limp and lifeless slugs;
just the way we like them.

SLUG DISPOSAL

Since your slug traps are not poison it is possible for slugs to survive their night on the town. So disposal becomes an issue, at least it did for me. Before I devised my Organic Slug Traps, I once tried to drown some nasty slugs in a garbage can but they just swam to the side and slithered out. There is NO WAY I am going to step on them or squish them between my fingers. If you drop them into the trash can they may sober up and crawl out. So gather up all the mornings' catch and dispose of them in a Ziplock sandwich bag. Seal the top well so they can't escape and drop them into your dumpster.
They will be goners before the garbage truck rolls by.

If you have a creature such as a reptile or rodent that would like to munch on your drunk slugs, please feel free. They are not poisoned and are safe to eat.

One unfortunate snail.
I didn't get much in this trap.
As you can see the soil in this spot is too dry for slug and snail hunting.

If you don't get anything in your trap the first night, move it to another location. Keep moving it around until you find your slug's hideout. You will rarely ever see a slug in daylight as they like to hide in shady, damp soil under rocks, flower pots, porches, in the shady area around trees and under your hose faucet, especially if you have a little drip. They only like to come out at night when it is cool and dewy. Look for trails of slimy mucous where slugs have crawled along. Mostly you will only be aware of them because of damage done to your tender crops.

If you notice a slug trying to exit one of your traps the most likely reason is that the alcohol has evaporated from the beer. In warm summer weather it is best to set the trap late in the day and refresh the beer daily to prevent evaporation. Fresh beer can attract them even in the daytime though if you place your traps in a sufficiently wet, shady spot.

Slug eggs hatch in about 4-6 weeks. After you have gotten most of the slugs from your garden continue to set traps once or twice a week for about 6-8 more weeks. That way when the eggs hatch you can catch them before they mature and lay more eggs. If the babies escape you'll back to square one next spring.

Thanks for looking at my blog.

Happy Slug and Snail Hunting. Happy Organic Gardening.