garden pests

I was just out checking on my plants and now, along with a few hostas, my 1 remaining Phlox divaricata and my
Brise d' Anjou Polemonium are getting all chewed up. I'm assuming it's slugs eating them too.

What can i do to eliminate these pests? aside from get rid off all the wood chips around the plants and make "swimming pools" of that yeast/sugar formula for them to drown in?
Regarding sluggo -- if most of my plants are getting eaten, where can i sprinkle this stuff to attract them, but not to the plants??

I'm getting at my wits end... i've spent a small fortune on this 1 garden only to have it eaten by pests.


thanks for any guidance

Terese

Hi Terese,
I have been as desperate as you in my beginning years of gardening with slugs and snails devouring my dear plants. As I always refused to use poisonous products in my garden I found the solution in introducing toads in my garden. They are really great predators of these pests. My garden is an ideal habitat for them, being mainly half and full shadow with a lot of hibernating places and a place to procreate; a small pond is sufficient. My community is flourishing and I have hundreds of them by now in all sizes.
Other good predators are birds, frogs and newts but the best of all is the toad.

I used to have a big toad.... but i'm sure he;s long gone by now... i saw him the first 3 yrs i was here [he'd nicely clean my front porch of bugs every other day] but i haven't seen him in over 2 yrs now.... he was a cutie too.... would let me pick him up without peeing on me. *smile* and i just to help him get june bugs... i'd swat at them, they'd bounce off the concrete and land on their backs - then he'd hop on over and gobble them up.

I did just see a tiny baby last night and tossed him in the bed....

I also was thinking about getting some of those "toad houses" - though they normally just burrow into the damp soil and under wood chips... I wish i could buy some and make sure they stick around... though they do have preditors *sniff* and that is possibly where my big guy went [toad heaven]

Look for slug & snail bait that contain the active ingredient, Iron phosphate. Such as Sluggo > http://enviro-pest.com/bait/sluggo.htm
Also, is found in several other name/brand products. > http://www.neudorff.com/index.php?id=169

Definitely pet & eco-friendly. * Plus the soil benefits as well!

Another DGer or two, are having similar problems, here > http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/744034/#new

- Magpye

Edited: to add .. that I've no experience with these products nor a slug/snail problem. Altho' I see snails and slugs on occasion, I see nor discover any damage from them. But we've also got a wonderful population of various species of toads & lizards, along with garter and hog-nosed snakes, etc. Typical well-balanced 'food chain' .. (heehee)

This message was edited Jul 8, 2007 11:25 AM

thanks for that link... Yeeaks, that is a big'un

i just have the smaller slugs - like snails without shells

Terese,
If you create a little pond, doesn't have to mean big expenses and create a lot of hibernating places like allowing dead logs in the garden , piled up stones, not being a too neat gardener, then I'm sure they will stay and procreate rapidly.
The pet- and eco friendly slug pellets can be a temporary solution until your community is thriving and large enough to combat the pests. The advantage I have is that I don't have to think about the problem any longer as they do the job for me.
If you could get hands on some toadspawn in next spring after you have your little pond, that could give you a good start.

Here is picture how the toad spawn looks like; they lay they eggs in double strings and tye it around waterplants

This is how the tadpoles look like