The annual war has officially started again. I’m talking about the war on Slugs. Those sly quite mollusks that think they can crawl all around my garden and feast on the newly emerging, fresh greenery. I just want to grow hostas that have all of the leaves intact at the end of fall. Is that too much to ask?!
A light bulb finally went off. In order to win the war, I need to think like a slug. Hmmm, that sounds crazy but if I learn the life cycle, then I WILL WIN!
According to Oregon State University, there are three essential times of the year to bait. Starting in late January through February, over wintering eggs will begin to hatch. When the baby slugs emerge they need to eat (think your newly planted primroses). Those little devils will eat your plants until they go into “food comma” around the end of May. These slugs will then lay their eggs in the fall to hatch in January and February the following year.
Meanwhile, any adult slugs that lived through the winter will lay eggs in February. These eggs will hatch anytime from May to September. These slugs are the ones that have become my arch enemies!
So back to my light bulb moment- If I bait in February, I will poison both the adults that have over wintered , getting ready to lay eggs that will eat my hostas as well as the newly hatched generation that are going to eat my fabulous primroses!
I will the follow up and bait my known victims in May, June and July to catch the slugs that would lay eggs in the fall. October and November are again the last months that I need to bait to catch the slugs I’ve missed all year.
I have found that Sluggo is my best option as bait for many reasons:
- It is the best bait that works!
- My garden is home to my dogs, neighbor cats, birds, squirrels and other wildlife I wanted to make sure that my annual war doesn’t affect their health.
- My husband is also not willing to sacrifice his craft beer to the cause.
- Sluggo contains Iron Phosphate, which will make the slugs think that they are full when they really aren’t. After they eat the bait, they will go into hiding and starve to death.
- I have found that when I use other baits (not pet safe), the slugs will become poisioned and will die on the spot, leaving gross slimy slugs that my dogs love to roll in….YUCK!
- With Sluggo, the shaker can is really easy to apply, when applied properly and timely, I will be victorious!
With this formula, Darwin’s survival of the fittest will occur. But slugs aren’t that smart, or are they….?
Oregon State Slug life cycle:
The annual war has officially started again. I’m talking about the war on Slugs. Those sly quite mollusks that think they can crawl all around my garden and feast on the newly emerging, fresh greenery. I just want to grow hostas that have all of the leaves intact at the end of fall. Is that too much to ask?!
A light bulb finally went off. In order to win the war, I need to think like a slug. Hmmm, that sounds crazy but if I learn the life cycle, then I WILL WIN!
According to Oregon State University, there are three essential times of the year to bait. Starting in late January through February, over wintering eggs will begin to hatch. When the baby slugs emerge they need to eat (think your newly planted primroses). Those little devils will eat your plants until they go into “food comma” around the end of May. These slugs will then lay their eggs in the fall to hatch in January and February the following year.
Meanwhile, any adult slugs that lived through the winter will lay eggs in February. These eggs will hatch anytime from May to September. These slugs are the ones that have become my arch enemies!
So back to my light bulb moment- If I bait in February, I will poison both the adults that have over wintered , getting ready to lay eggs that will eat my hostas as well as the newly hatched generation that are going to eat my fabulous primroses!
I will the follow up and bait my known victims in May, June and July to catch the slugs that would lay eggs in the fall. October and November are again the last months that I need to bait to catch the slugs I’ve missed all year.
I have found that Sluggo is my best option as bait for many reasons:
- It is the best bait that works!
- My garden is home to my dogs, neighbor cats, birds, squirrels and other wildlife I wanted to make sure that my annual war doesn’t affect their health.
- My husband is also not willing to sacrifice his craft beer to the cause.
- Sluggo contains Iron Phosphate, which will make the slugs think that they are full when they really aren’t. After they eat the bait, they will go into hiding and starve to death.
- I have found that when I use other baits (not pet safe), the slugs will become poisioned and will die on the spot, leaving gross slimy slugs that my dogs love to roll in….YUCK!
- With Sluggo, the shaker can is really easy to apply, when applied properly and timely, I will be victorious!
With this formula, Darwin’s survival of the fittest will occur. But slugs aren’t that smart, or are they….?
