Snails and slugs got you down? Try some home remedies.

Snails from my garden

Snails may have a reputation for being slow, but that is little consolation for anyone who has experienced a disastrous over-night decimation of an entire hosta or vegetable bed by garden snails and slugs. This morning I found the typical kind of snail damage on some of my cucumber leaves—ragged holes and chew marks along the edges. Snails are nocturnal and unless you want to sit out in your garden all night with a flashlight, they are seldom seen and difficult to catch. There are some inexpensive, organic remedies, however, for repelling snails.

Ragged leaves are typical of snail and slug damage

Copper: Snails and slugs are slimy and if they come into contact with copper a chemical reaction occurs and they receive an electrical shock. You can buy copper flashing at a hardware store and surround your garden bed with it or place pennies on the sticky side of a strip of tape and use these strips around your garden beds. 

Sharp materials: Crushed egg shells and diatomaceous earth (DE) have sharp edges and will physically injure the soft bodies of snails and slugs. Use food grade DE from a reputable nursery. The DE used in pool maintenance is a much different substance will not act as a deterrent to snails. Coffee grounds also work fairly well in controlling these pests.

Beer: One of the best methods of controlling snails is with stale beer. Sink a small container (I use small clay pot saucers) into the soil and pour some stale beer in it. Snails and slugs are attracted to beer and will fall into the container and die happy.

Sink a small container of stale beer into the soil to drown snails and slugs

There are also commercial preparations (such as Sluggo) available for killing snails and slugs. Most are expensive and contain chemicals that I prefer to avoid in my garden.

Do you have a remedy for controlling snails and slugs? I would love to hear about it.