Eco way to kill snails and slugs

[posalie]

I posted this earlier in Chat and was sent here to find the real experts 😊

What's an eco way to kill snails and slugs? We inherited a beautiful garden, and it's just full of snails (and some slugs) at the moment. The previous owner had lots of slug pellets and similar, but we're worried these will also harm hedgehogs and other wildlife. Is there an eco way to kill them?

(I know some people prefer not to kill them at all, but I need to kill them I'm afraid.)

Beer traps are good and I try to tell myself the slugs died happy (disclaimer I dont think they do) or salt but that is definitely not a nice death!

I will firstly say I do not agree with killing them. This article has some other methods (as well as killing) amp.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/aug/08/five-steps-gardeners-take-control-of-slugs-natural-way

Collect snails, rehome them while out on a walk.

I put a green food waste bag on my hand and pick them all up of an evening - pop them in the garden waste bin. Can’t be any worse than a beer trap.

Encourage wildlife that eats them into your garden. Build a wildlife pond. Feed birds :) they'll find them.

You don't need to kill them, you want to kill them.

I remove them from the areas where they are unwelcome (fruit and veg) and otherwise leave them to birds and hedgehogs.

I do actively encourage birds and hedgehogs.

I use garlic wash spray on lettuce and tender plants. Works a treat. Doesn’t kill them. Just puts them off.

I throw snails in the gap between my fence and our neighbours garage or throw them in our green bin when it's in the back garden. The neighbours only have trees and grass but the snails try to make their way back again and I catch them again. We have quite an expanse of decking to cross so I only need to do it every couple of days.

I used salt on slugs once and felt absolutely terrible. I use nematodes instead. I mentioned in another thread that it only keeps numbers down rather than eradicate them completely but my garden is slug city so it has a big impact. I also use copper tape around pots which is fiddly but works.

Oat bran.

Interested in this...

www.siennahosta.co.uk/pages/garlic-wash-recipe

heres the garlic spray recipe.

Honestly, I tried it thinking this is not going to work.
now I have lettuce and carrots!! It’s amazing

I wonder if anywhere hires hedgehogs?

Thank you!

Can I spray the garlic wash liberally everywhere? Do I need to spray everyday?

Although... will the snails and slugs just relocate to a neighbour's garden?

Re beer pots, how many sqm will each pot cover?

Your title sounds like an oxymoron to me.

Nematodes are natural parasites on slugs and reduce the population. You can order a box of nematodes online. You mix with water & water onto the flower beds from a watering can. Pretty effective if you follow the directions carefully

Create a pond and introduce frogs.

I found about 50 snails on this tree today. Can anyone identify the tree, and tell me why snails love it so much?

They don't like coffee grounds either.

I bloody hate them. I don't grow fruit or veg but they munch so many perennials. When there's a long lived infestation, it takes a long time to turn it around.

Are nematodes harmful to wildlife or humans? What do they do once they've eaten all the snails and slugs?

They are basically tiny worms which burrow into the snails and slugs and die when their hosts die. Ultimate self sacrifice

I salute you, nematodes 🥺

So they only work on things in the soil. Your snails in the tree will live on.

Nematodes work really well but a) they're expensive, b) they only work if it's dry and c) you need to keep them in the fridge or they die.

They are great early in the season and will destroy all the million of slug eggs that are festering in your soil that you didn't know about.