Getting rid of slugs: three non-chemical methods that work!

April 1, 2:52 PMSeattle Garden & Kitchen ExaminerJerry & Kristy

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     Three non-chemical ways to get rid of slugs!

SLUGS - I really don't like slugs!  Every year we have to deal with slugs and every year we try to find a method that works to get rid of them. Since we only do organic gardening, our choices are somewhat limited. Here are a couple tried and true methods we use to deal with unwanted slugs:

Beer with a Slug Chaser

The yeast in the beer will draw the slugs in so go ahead and use the cheapest beer you can find. Fill a pie tin (or old butter containers) with about an inch or two of beer and place it in the garden. Bury it a bit so the slugs can crawl right in but not flush with the soil or you run the risk of ground beetles joining them as well. Once in, the won't be coming out!

The Good - Quick, easy and it works

The Bad - You need to keep changing the beer every other day, even if the trap is empty. Also, dogs may enjoy the beer too! Our dog would not only drink the beer but the slug as well! We moved on to new methods after that.

Dog, Cat or Human Hair

This one we heard of from a friend and we didn't really think would work. We were wrong. It appears, slugs have a really hard time making it through the hair to the plants. Simply put out hair around the plants they are attacking and they will be stuck in it and die.

The Good - It's free and if you have a shedding dog or cat, it is readily available. In addition, if you use human hair, you get the benefit of all its nitrogen.

The Bad - It is somewhat gross when you see a slug dead in this clump of hair. If you don't have animals, you'd need to keep cutting your own hair!

Chasing the Slugs Down

This is the method we use the most often - a good old spray of ammonia! To make this organic slug killer, you take a spray bottle and mix up a solution of 1 part ammonia with 2 parts tap water. You can easily spray a slug with the solution while gardening. We like this method because not only is it organic but it can be used close up or slugs in the back area of a bed.

The Good - Organic, inexpensive and very easy to use

The Bad - While it won't harm the soil or many plants, you need to be careful around the more delicate ones.

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