Slug Control with Ammonia

http://www.hillgardens.com/slugs.htm#ammonia

HTH

~* Robin

I think the article is a bit dated since it is dead-set against the use of slug and snail baits due to their toxic nature. This was true for baits containing metaldehyde but iron phosphate, available since the late 1990s, is a safe and effective tool in fighting both slugs and snails. It is sold under a number of names such as Snail Magic, Sluggo, Escar-go and others. It is safe for use around children and pets.

I can attest to its effectiveness, having used it to control a major outbreak of hungry gastropods this year.

I prefer to not use household ammonia in my gardens.

Wayne

Yeah Wayne, that could be good, but in my opinion, it's still a Phosphate. There are Physicians Warnings on the Material Safety Data Sheet That are not on the printed labels for the product! What's is the other 99% inert ingredients? Besides water H2O?

~* Robin

How about this from the BBC News in the UK: Slugs take fright at garlic - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3104302.stm

~* Robin

Thanks for this info on slugs. I've been fighting them ever since I started to try organic gardening last year. I'm using the Ruth Stout method of mulching. Does anyone know if this encourages slugs due to moist soil caused by the mulch and places for them to hide. Will lime work on top of the mulch? Thanks! Linda

One of the downsides of a permanent mulch is the habitat it may provide for slugs. I would only use lime for any reason if a soil test indicates your soil will benefit from it. Anything such as lime or industrially-made household ammonia that can affect your soils ph should not be used without knowledge of what it may do to your particular soil.

The full instruction book supplied with Slug Magic pellets contains the same, very minimal medical cautions as the MSDS. I do not know what the inert ingredients are in the iron phosphate baits. I've written to the manufacturer to inquire. I do know the active ingredient, iron phosphate, is a common, naturally occuring soil compound.

It is recommended by a number of organizations, such as ATTRA as being an "environmentally friendly" tool in fighting slugs and snails.

Wayne

Why not ammonia? Here I thought I was being good washing the deck in water, lemon joy and ammonia. I thought it was supposed to be better than the bleach or deck wash- keeping mosquitoes at bay while actually feeding the plants under and around the deck? Is there something I don't know?

Sorry, I posted at the same time....

Ammonia - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ammonia

The main uses of ammonia are in the production of fertilizers, explosives and polymers. It is also an ingredient in certain household glass cleaners. Ammonia is found in small quantities in the atmosphere, being produced from the putrefaction of nitrogenous animal and vegetable matter. Ammonia and ammonium salts are also found in small quantities in rainwater, while ammonium chloride (sal-ammoniac) and ammonium sulfate are found in volcanic districts; crystals of ammonium bicarbonate have been found in Patagonian guano. Ammonium salts also are found distributed through all fertile soil and in seawater. Substances containing ammonia, or that are similar to it, are called ammoniacal.

In addition to serving as a fertilizer ingredient, ammonia can also be used directly as a fertilizer by forming a solution with irrigation water, without additional chemical processing. This later use allows the continuous growing of nitrogen dependent crops such as maize (corn) without crop rotation but this type of use leads to poor soil health.

Ammonia's role in biologic systems and human disease

Ammonia is an important source of nitrogen for living systems. Although atmospheric nitrogen abounds, few living creatures are capable of utilizing this nitrogen. Nitrogen is required for the synthesis of amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein. Some plants rely on ammonia and other nitrogenous wastes incorporated into the soil by decaying matter. Others, such as nitrogen-fixing legumes, benefit from symbiotic relationships with rhizobia which create ammonia from atmospheric nitrogen.[11]

Ammonia also plays a role in both normal and abnormal animal physiology. Ammonia is created through normal amino acid metabolism and is toxic in high concentrations. The liver converts ammonia to urea through a series of reactions known as the urea cycle. Liver dysfunction, such as that seen in cirrhosis, may lead to elevated amounts of ammonia in the blood (hyperammonemia). Likewise, defects in the enzymes responsible for the urea cycle, such as ornithine transcarbamylase, lead to hyperammonemia. Hyperammonemia contributes to the confusion and coma of hepatic encephalopathy as well as the neurologic disease common in people with urea cycle defects and organic acidurias.[12]

Ammonia is important for normal animal acid/base balance. After formation of ammonium from glutamine, α-ketoglutarate may be degraded to produce two molecules of bicarbonate which are then available as buffers for dietary acids. Ammonium is excreted in the urine resulting in net acid loss. Ammonia may itself diffuse across the renal tubules, combine with a hydrogen ion, and thus allow for further acid excretion.

~* Robin

Lime - From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lime

Soil Amendment & Nutrient Deficiency Chart: http://www.ghorganics.com/page32.html
Scroll down to the bottom of the page; but stop & read the other things too!

I hope this helps both of you to understand that natural chemicals occur in nature - Naturally!

These are also called the micronutrients.

~* Robin

I stand by my comment that adding materials, whether they are natural occuring and approved for organic agriculture like lime or man-made chemicals like household ammonia to your soil should only be done if you know your soil needs that material. If you are screwing with the soil's ph or adding nitrogen, you should first know that the soil and the plants you are growing requires it. A soil test tells you what your soil needs.

Wayne

Don't forget the lovely bowls of beer traps for the little slimy darlings. I also go hunting with a pair of scissors...
Ducks and chickens LOVE slugs. If you could borrow or raise some, they'd sure cut down on your slug population. A neighbor of mine once used a mixture of cornmeal, molasses, & some other ingredients as bait & caught quite a few.

Not for the weak of stomach:

I've found that slugs have the same reaction to urine as they do to household ammonia. One can draw one's own conclusions.

Caught quite a few ducks or slugs? :)

My chickens love slugs and snails. I only wish I could trust them in the garden on their own. I let them in one part and found they love strawberry, both fruit and plants. They also like sunflower and amaranth plants. That is about as far as I let them get. Maybe when some of the crops get more mature & they can't do as much damage I'll try them in there again. Tomorrow I'll pen them in with the potatoes to do some slug removal there and see how they behave.

Wayne

Scissors are still the best method, & is emotionally satisfying as well. I take pleasure in destroying those slimey icky things that have devoured all of my seedlings. I bring a flashlight when I walk my cat outdoors, & snip them in half - caught right in the act of eating my plants!
Perhaps I enjoy it a little too much :)
Julie

I'm getting real mean in my bug squishing too..... :} evil grin

I second the beer trap.

No, no, no! You put the beer out for the gnomes, and they pay you with dead slugs! That's how it really works. ;p