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Ferric phosphate slug pellets
Fishy65
Posts: 2,276
I bought some of these from Asda today, rather reluctantly I must admit as I'm loath to use poisons. Just how nature friendly are they? I have a recently planted clematis that is getting eaten and I was down there last night picking off snails. I have two dogs.
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I'm not sure Fishy but I will be interested to see replies. I'm finding lamb wool pellets from SlugGone are expensive but seem to be very effective so far (touch wood). It's organic and child/pet/wildlife friendly of course. Our slug and snail problem is huge this year, I feel your pain!
Last edited: 24 May 2016 21:19:18
Hi Mark, I saw some of the wool pellets and did consider buying some. I've decided against using the pellets I did get after reading up on them. The ferric phosphate is fine but there is a man-made agent not labelled that causes the iron to be released into the digestive system at toxic levels. So I've gone with beer traps tonight and will see how they work. Three jars placed at strategic points around the clematis in question. The lengths we go to!!
It's difficult to tell how harmful they are. You wouldn't want them, or a dead slug, to be eaten by anything, but very few slugs are taken by birds and amphibians so the chance of catching one with your poisoned slug must be small. I don't know about hedgehogs. None of my pets or visiting birds show any interest in the pellets. I collect up living and dead slugs in the early morning, too, which may help.
I have been using quite a lot of scattered ferric phosphate "organic" slug pellets. I have just found a dead hedgehog down in that area of the garden. I saw it when it was still alive curled on its side and thought it was ok; it was still there the next morning - under some shrubbery, with no obvious injury. Then I was away for a couple of days and it was dead in the same place when I returned. I don't know what caused its death, but I am wondering about these slug pellets which are supposed to be non toxic to wildlife other than slugs and snails. I read now that the EDTA in them may make them toxic and they have not been properly tested for toxicity. I am quite upset about the hedgehog.
Rosalind - I used them once and in the days that followed our border terrier was off colour and saw his paw prints around the area in question. The fact that slugs and snails die after consumption of these pellets negates any claim they are wildlife friendly in my view. I believe the reality is that yes, they are safer than the old metaldehyde pellets but totally safe? No. I won't be using them again.
There's a lot of (deliberate) misleading info out there. The suggestion (not actually stated) that organic means safe for wildlife for a start.
Organic means derived from living matter. Digitalin is organic.
I think your conclusion is right Fishy, not safe for wild or domesticated life
In the sticks near Peterborough
I have used these, sparingly but frequently, since I first found them on sale here. I start on Valentine's Day around susceptible hostas and clems and baby veggies later on and find they do the trick.
Haven't found any dead birds or hedgehogs and the dogs are fine.
This year though has been so wet the slugs are proliferating all over the garden I gave up but now the hostas and clems and veggies are past their vulnerable phase I no longer need the pellets. Little, often and targeted seems to be OK here.
Link to the article Mike mentions
http://www.hostalibrary.org/firstlook/RRIronPhosphate.htm
In the sticks near Peterborough
The bottom line sums it up.
Be extremely careful to keep children and pets out of the containers. Use only sparingly as directed, don't put big bands or piles anywhere, and clean up spills. Do not allow children or pets to play unsupervised in treated areas, and watch for neighbor's dogs or kids when the product is down. There is nothing wrong with these products - they work very well as a slug and snail bait. The problem is the deceptive advertising that hides the true nature of these products, and disarms the caution users should have with a dangerous poison.
It is ultimately our responsibility to keep kids, pets, and wildlife safe from poisoning when we use or store poisons. Both metaldehyde and iron phosphate baits are pretty safe if used properly, but they are both dangerous poisons if consumed in enough quantity. Remember too that the iron phosphate baits as far as I know do not contain Bitrex so they are much easier to eat in large quantities, and that iron builds up in the system so eating smaller amounts over time will increase the amount of poison until symptoms appear.
I use them, very sparingly, I don't use the container as an applicator but tip them into my hand and apply 3 or 4 around a plant. I have seen people with 'blue' soil! , apply just a couple, it will kill the slugs but using this amount I don't think they will harm any life. Whoever would allow a child or an animal to consume large quantities.