WSU Master Gardeners Corner

Spring is definitely in the air and our gardens are awakening from their winter slumber. You may be seeing the tender green leaves of perennial plants poking above the garden surface and relishing the thought that soon there will be flowers and greenery to enjoy. But you aren’t the only one welcoming those tender shoots…hungry slugs are also awakening and relishing those very same leaves. So in this edition of our new WSU Garden Journal, I’d like to offer suggestions on how to defeat the slugs (and snails).

Both slugs and snails prefer cool, moist locations and feed primarily at night starting about 2 hours after sunset and continuing on until 2 hours or so after daybreak. They will leave a telltale slime trail and ragged holes in plant foliage (or completely devour young seedlings). Although slugs will feed on most garden plants, they prefer those in damp, shady areas, those with foliage close to the ground, and those with overlapping leaves where they can easily hide. Some of their favorite menus include hosta, cabbage, hollyhocks, marigolds, primroses, and snapdragons.

So, how to get rid of these freeloaders? One effective, albeit labor-intensive, way is to go out and handpick them from the plants while they’re dining. Early morning is best because you have daylight to see them. Another option is to lay wet newspaper or cardboard on the ground near the plants, which the slugs will use for hiding while not dining. Check underneath and remove slugs each day.

Some people sink a shallow bowl in the garden and fill it with beer. The slugs crawl in, drink their fill and die.

Whichever method you pick, you’ll save yourself countless damage if you do slug removal soon, before those little baby slugs have grown into adults with adult appetites.

Do you have questions for WSU Master Gardeners? We will try to answer as many questions in future articles as possible. E-mail: twietl@co.wahkiakum.wa.us Or call 795-3278.