Gardens under attack after slug increase

Slug numbers are expected to keep growing if we do not see a spout of dry and hot weather this summer.

After the unpredicted weather that has been seen across England and Scotland it wasn’t just the rivers and lakes that benefited from the amount of rainfall received, but the slug population has boomed and has supposedly doubled due to the perfect weather conditions that they like. While this is good news for the birds who thoroughly enjoy snacking on a slimy slug, all farmers are expected to see crop shortages this year after the slug numbers are expected to have doubled after a frost free winter and mild and wet spring. So for all potato farmers and potato consumers expect to see numbers fall and prices rise this year thanks to our unwelcome slimy pests.

B&Q have said that their sales in slug pellets have already risen by 44% this year compared to last and stores in Scotland have said to have sold double the amount of slug pellets this year. So what to do to protect our gardens?

Lay gravel or egg shell around your prize plants, this will hurt the slugs and will not travel across it. Gather some margarine tubs or tuna tins and bury them a little way into the soil, now poor some cheap and fizzy beer into them, the idea is that the slugs love the smell of beer and will fall into the containers and drown. Another tip is not to leave your grass cutting on the lawn, rake it up and put it in the green bin or take to your local tip, slugs find cut grass a perfect habitat. And lastly, pop out some bird feeders and encourage the birds into your garden, they will find the slugs and do the cleaning up for you.