Preventing Snails in the Garden

Request: Preventing Snails in the Garden

How do I get rid of the soft shell snails that are eating my vegetable plants in my garden?

By Mrs Geo from VT

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RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

Don't know if snails are born beer lovers, but putting pie tins outside with a bit of brew in them in evening near what they munch on will get rid of the escargot. If you happen across one and want it gone grab your salt shaker and pour it on. It will bubble up and die. (06/29/2010)

By stormy10000

RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

I save all my eggshells and then nuke them for 2-3 minutes {depending on how many shells are in the bowl or plate}, after they have cooled you can stick them in a coffee can or some sort of container and they readily crunch up into very small pieces. Simply sprinkle these eggshells in a circle around your young plants or seedlings coming up and the snails or slugs will NOT crawl across the shells since they have sharp egdes so your plants are safe.

Not only are your plants protected without a lot of work and no pesticides or poisons, you are recycling a common household product AND it feeds the soil! This trick will not harm beneficial insects or worms coming to the top of the soil in search for food.

It's also a good idea to plant some nasturtiums in and around your garden since aphids prefer the "nasties" and will leave most of your garden veggies alone and just eat the nasties. {you can also pull the "nastioes out and trash them if they do get full of aphids and just replant them in the same place,} this is called a "catch crop" and many organic gardeners use this method.

You can also invest in a few toads to keep the area clean of slugs and snails, just provide a red clay pot, placed unside down in the middle of the garden and keep it watered, it can be a broken pot to allow the toads to get out and to hide under during the hottest part of the day, if you don't have a broken pot then prop one part up on a rock to provide a "door" for them to get in and out. (06/29/2010)

By wolfbytez

RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

BUG GETA by Ortho is what my garden place suggested. That is all she carries. So got it. Eating the tomatoes from the roots up. Pulled the tomato and they hung on in the larva stage. (06/30/2010)

By TandT Grandma

Request: Preventing Snails in the Garden

Is there anything I can do now (Spring) that will prevent my garden and whole backyard from getting creepy snails? I know a few tips on getting rid of them, but I would prefer preventing them from visiting altogether.

Lynn from Ontario, Canada

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RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

If you look under loose paving slabs, waterbutts, or anything else free standing you should find slugs and snails sleeping. Pick them off and dump them somewhere else, or kill them. Remember though, that snails will return unless you take them a long way away. There's no point throwing them over the fence. They will come home! (03/18/2009)

By daisychain

RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

You could put broken eggshells in your garden. Snails don't like walking (crawling) across them. Plus, they are a good source of calcium for your soil. (03/19/2009)

By sjackie2000

RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

Try putting unused, dry coffee (not instant, has to be regular) in a ring around the plants. Supposedly, the snails hate the caffeine in the coffee and won't cross it. Good luck! (03/20/2009)

By Lynn from CA

RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

Believe it or not, slugs love beer! If you fill a tuna can with beer, the slugs will climb into it and die. They'll be happy, but dead. Perhaps snails are beer lovers, too. I'd suggest a lower, slightly broader container and see how that works. (03/20/2009)

By pollylev

RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

We used to have an oak tree were told that the acorns attract slugs so maybe they attract snails, too. We no longer have the tree so the slug population is much smaller, but we still have to protect certain slug-tempting plants. We sprinkle crushed egg shells on top of the soil around the plants and the slugs can't glide over them. Sorry that I don't know how to completely eliminate snails, but maybe this will help. We never had any luck with the beer method. (03/21/2009)

By Goldie2

RE: Preventing Snails in the Garden

Snails don't like to crawl over anything scratchy or sharp. I've used eggshells (as mentioned above), gravel, and oyster shells. (03/23/2009)

By Scooter 2