My Hosta Was Eaten by Snails
Snails and slugs love to eat hosta plants and start consuming them at the edges and will keep going until all the leaves and stems are gone. Snails and slugs are in the same family and eat the same plants. A snail carries around a coiled shell on its back while slugs look like short, fat slimy worms. They enjoy wet, dark conditions and go into hiding whenever the sun comes out or during dry periods. Does this Spark an idea?
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Eliminate Hiding Places
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Clean hosta gardens to keep hiding places to a minimum. Remove heavy leafs that fell last fall and take out any logs, bricks or other debris that hold moisture underneath. Thin out ground cover and hostas so that there is enough air circulation to dry out the soil.
Hand Picking
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There are several ways to hand pick slugs and snails out of the garden. Keep a pail of soapy water nearby to dump them in. Take a flashlight out to the garden at night and pick them off the leaves. There are methods allowing for hand picking in daylight. At night, place either a wooden board or wet newspapers down on the surface near hosta with a little orange rind underneath. The orange rind attracts them and in the morning, there will be a host of the creatures to get rid of.
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Beer Method
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Anything with yeast, especially beer attracts slugs and snails. Pour about 1 inch in the lid of a jar and dig it into the ground near hostas so it is ground level. At night, they will climb in to have a drink and drown.
Rough Handling
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Snails and slugs have a soft underbelly and move by contracting their bodies. Every sharp particle is uncomfortable. Therefore, sprinkle broken eggshells, construction sand and diatomaceous earth around the hosta garden, as this will keep them at bay.
Copper Sheeting
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Copper and moisture causes electricity. Therefore, placing 3-inch pieces of thin copper sheeting around a hosta garden will most likely keep snails and slugs out. They produce mucous and even leave a trail behind them when they move. When the mucous comes in contact with the copper sheeting it makes them very uncomfortable and they will go away.
Salt
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Regular table salt is detrimental to a slug or snail. When sprinkled right on the creature it will dry out their body so much they will look like they are melting.
Chemical Control
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Bate using iron phosphate was developed in 2002 that attracts snails and slugs. They eat it and die. It is less toxic than older bates made with metaldehyde and will not harm other birds or animals.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit Snail image by Evgeniy Munchenko from Fotolia.com
