Enemy #1

"Slug damage is greatest in cool, moist weather or when young plants are small and tender." Think maybe they could be a problem for us?

Slugs have a job, and that job is to help in the composting cycle. In addition to eating our tender greens - they especially love our pac choi and spinach - they eat dead leaves, fungus and decaying vegetable material. Slugs are an important part of the ecosystem, and we are all about supporting the ecosystem. Nevertheless, I have come to HATE slugs and THIS IS WAR.

Suddenly, our Plot's location next to the well-managed and very active community compost pile seems less than ideal. They are sliming their way across the 18 or so inches between the compost pile and Plot #14. Why should they eat that dead, decaying stuff when they can feast on the lovely and delicious smorgasbord in our garden? I read that each slug has both male and female reproductive organs, meaning that all mature slugs can lay eggs, up to 400 per year. Eggs are laid in small groups of 3 or 4, or as many as 30 or 40. Eggs are round or oval, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch in diameter and colorless to milky white. They can begin to damage plants immediately upon hatching. Eeeeek.

We've used a lot of Sluggo, but are not sure how much it is slowing them down. Sluggo is a fairly non-toxic bait based on iron phosphate. It keeps slugs from feeding and they begin to die within a few days. We also tried beer, which supposedly attracts and then drowns them, with limited success. Diatomaceous earth seems to work, but only as long as it is dry. Next, we are going to surround the Plot with strips of copper. I'll let you know how it goes.