July 15, 2013
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I wondered why the sudden influx of snails. Could it be
the heavy rains and intense humidity on the odd day of sunshine? Is there
something different about my gardens that these snails are attracted too? I did
a little reading in one of my go to garden books, Rodale Organic Gardening Basics, “Pests” and found that snails, much like slugs, are attracted to
decaying plant matter and love to feed on young plants.
I do have a thick layer of mulch hay in two of my gardens and several inches of leaves in another used to prevent weeds and to keep the ground moist. While I will not forgo my mulch, it drastically reduces the amount of time I spend weeding, I have found a quick, cheap and organic solution to help control these slimy trailed garden pests - beer traps.
I’ve used beer traps to control the slug population in my
gardens for quite a few years now, and I’ve been happy with the results. I’ve
doubled my efforts and put out more beer traps where I’ve noticed the highest
population of snails. I’ve attracted quite a few so far, and make sure to hand
pick all snails that I see when weeding.
Snails and slugs are attracted to the yeast in beer, which
if you’re like me, you always have an odd can or two in the fridge. I set out
my traps in a shady spot slightly away from the garden if possible. Intense sun
leads to mold in the traps causing them to need to be changed more often, and
placing the traps outside of the garden lures the snails out rather than in.
If you’d like to know how to easily make your own snail
and slug beer traps, click on over to my post, How to Make Your Own Slug Traps, to find out how.
What pests have you noticed in your garden this year?
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