@Zenjeff, yes, but if ever more and coming in from surrounding gardens then I'm not sure the principle works. I'm the only one gardening and planting within a five house circumference, or so. Two houses within this radius have plastic lawns, one has concreted the whole back.
I'm not disputing that nematodes seem to work for lots of people. I know some gardeners swear by them. I tried the packet versions over ten years and have not found any difference and wanted to run a more controlled trial to attempt to measure the results. So I did and found no change in numbers for that space. But that may be to do with my own hyper local factors, such as lack of other gardeners near by and nobody close keeping on top of their own slugs. Or use of my own homemade compost or wood chippings. I don't know.
@Posy I am taking all approaches at once. Snipping is ok for large slugs out on the path, but doesn't work for the tiny slugs under every leaf of every forgetmenot plant. It might be ok for a formal border, but with the more wildy garden I'm after, it's not really possible. Night hunts are killing my back and it doesn't really feel sustainable - more like an "emergency strategy" than a full solution.
Some people have advised that I don't grow plants that slugs like, but it doesn't seem unreasonable to wish to grow snowdrops for the bees.
One interesting aspect of the current night hunts is noting how crazy the slugs are for allium leaves. (Christophii style). They are creating a feeding frenzy. I found this when growing actual vegetable garlic too. You hear people say that slugs are not fond of aromatics like salvias but I haven't found this at all. In fact your "garlic spray" might be sending them wild. Lol.
I certainly start to wonder about the hierarchy of plants they choose - what they are deriving from each. I suspect they are very much like bees in that all plants are not at all equally attractive and they are willing to travel to find the plant that offers most of what they are looking for. It's not a case of just munching what is closest to hand.
I'm also interested in possible plant hormone switches when a plant gets to a certain size or height. When this phlox was a good two feet high, in a pot, there was a total feeding frenzy. Then about ten days later it was as if a switch had been thrown and there was not one slug near it and the phlox grew away happily in the pot. The same leaves were on the plant, baby leaves were still emerging. A plant doesn't change that much in ten days. Did the smell change? Was there suddenly a better plant at the top of the feeding hierarchy? I'd be interested to know.
I would have thought that the surrounding grass and concrete would provide a deterrent rather than an invitation. Why cross the desert to get to your garden if there's plants behind them. I suspect that they are breeding in your garden. Can you see evidence of trails heading towards your garden if you look over the fence?
B3, nope,they walk across concrete, shingle, copper. Your garden is gorgeous Fire, look how many you collected our garden is a lot bigger. We have attempted to collect them.
I wonder how many other gardeners face a similar issue. I don't go out into the garden at night, I don't have any reason to, and have never seen anything like the photos over the page or noticed the extreme damage that would inevitably be caused. Full credit to you for persevering, I think I would be most disheartened.
It's disheartening as someone wanting make a wildlife garden and having to change various strategies. But I guess it's like any gardening - we learn, adapt, face obstacles, change tack and celebrate such successes as we have.
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