Page 19 - Simply Veg Issue 1 2016

our garden, the others live in woods, fens, moors, seashore and mountains and their survival depends on them remaining in these locations. My experience suggests all snails that are present in the garden are pests and will eat anything vegetative whether fresh or rotting so in my opinion they are worse than slugs.
With slugs there are around 35 species and probably of these only 5 being a real pest to gardeners (See below.). Some reports suggest that the average garden in the UK can support 25000 slugs, most of these you’ll never see, because a large amount spend their lives underground and only emerge at night or after rain to feed.
I mentioned earlier that the original creatures emerged from the sea, and in
order for them to survive on dry land they need to produce copious amounts of a complex chemical slime, to keep themselves hydrated, allow them to move freely, and when required to stick to surfaces. The shiny trails they leave is slime, which is a substance designed to absorb water and allow them
to move across dry surfaces without them dehydrating, as well as to prevent their
soft underbodies being damaged by sharp objects as they move over them. Snails
are less likely to dehydrate because of their shell but the possibility is there. Some of the remedies in folklore to deter snails and slugs like ground eggshells, broken seashells and sand or gravel or even powdered glass will have limited effect
in controlling them.
There are slugs that
live on sandhills
on the coast and it
doesn’t stop them
moving around so
why should it work on
your garden?
If you decide to
collect slugs by hand to dispose of them, you’ll nd it dif cult to wash the slime off your ngers, this is because of its ability to absorb water, try wiping it off with a dry tissue rst
or pour a little vinegar on your hands prior
to washing this seems to remove the slime easily.
Slugs and snails are hermaphrodites, that is they possess both male and female reproductive organs, theoretically they can self-fertilize, but it seems that they prefer to mate. After mating each partner separates
and moves off to lay around 20-80 ‘eggs’ which are small
clear or translucent spheres. With most slugs eggs they’ll be found under planks, pots, stones or in hollows and crevices, anywhere where the
likelihood of dehydration is limited. The Keel slug nearly always lays the eggs underground often alongside or in potato tubers that have been missed when harvesting. Snails usually burrow into the ground to lay their eggs in
There are people that keep snails as pets, and yet I don’t know any that keep slugs
a hole. Mating will usually take place in the warmer months from Spring to late Summer. The eggs of slugs and snails can hatch within 4-5 weeks but can lie in the ground for extended periods. By nding and squashing them you’ll be reducing the number eating your crops in future, and it’s less messy than squashing slugs.
However, if my gures are anywhere near accurate you will not eradicate all of the slugs in your garden no matter how hard you try.
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