Nematodes

[Lunaballoon]

We applied slug killing nematodes for the first time this year but I can’t say we noticed any difference in numbers. We’re still seeing a few of the horrible Spanish slugs which could be immune to the nematodes.

How many applications are needed through the year and any advice on how to target the big Spanish ones?

The instructions say that you have to use them every 6 weeks, because once they're killed off the slugs there is nothing to sustain the elevated population of nematodes, so they naturally reduce to naturally occurring levels and then the slug population recovers. You also have to make sure you apply the in the right conditions to make sure all your expensive nematodes don't just dry up and die.

I did two applications earlier in the year, and then stopped because I decided it was too expensive. It seemed effective for the time they were active after I applied them, but they did come back because I stopped.

Not heard of Spanish slugs - off to google with trepidation...

I was hoping a one-off application might make a noticeable difference! I might give them another try before it gets too cold.

I wouldn’t google the Spanish interlopers - they’re horrible! DH managed to tread on one in his bare feet 😱

😱😱😱 I did that once as a teen - a huge one had slimed somehow into my parents kitchen and I can down for breakfast in bare feet

I did google - google tells me that the only solution for the Spanish ones is hand picking them, preferably before they get big enough to breed. I've definitely missed that boat. I know they do perform useful tasks in the garden and the ecosystem as a whole but I do really hate slugs.