How can I rid my garden of flower/plant eating slugs?

Sil20557717
by Sil20557717
Commercial slug baits are costly and dissolve when it rains.
  10 answers
  • Kelly Howard Kelly Howard on May 06, 2017

    I recommend two things...first, eggshells work! Save a bunch from breakfast and dry and crumble them around your plants. Slugs won't touch them because they are rough and hurt them but your plants will love them. Second, diatomaceous earth. It is a little bit more costly but works the same as egg shells and benefits the soil.

  • Peggy L Burnette Peggy L Burnette on May 06, 2017
    Salt will kill them.
  • William William on May 07, 2017

    Sink a few bowls or plates in the ground level with the surface. Fill the bowls/plates with (cheap) beer. The yeast attracts the slugs. They drink their fill and drown. Not their sorrows


    Anything you can make it uncomfortable for the slugs/snails to crawl on will deter them. A combination of solutions from everyone here should take care of them.


    Broken nutshells work in the same way as egg shells when getting rid of slugs. Break up the nutshells into small pieces, and create a protective barrier around your plants. Any slugs that come near your vegetables will soon turn the other way.


    Crushed egg shells work as a great home remedy of slugs. This is because slugs don’t like moving across sharp objects, although it isn’t not impossible for them to do, they just prefer not to. Break up the empty egg shells into small(ish) pieces and place around the flowers, plants, vegetables, and fruits you want to keep safe from slug damage.


    Ash and Cinders make a rough protective barrier, and the fine ash also acts as a desiccant that dries the slug out. Wood ash and cinders are preferable. Avoid direct contact with plants.


    Grit and Gravel. The sharp rasping edges of finely crushed ‘horticultural grit’ makes an excellent slug barrier. Coarser gravel is largely ineffective, other than for decorative purposes.


    Sandpaper. Cut rings of sandpaper and slip them round the stems of vulnerable plants.


    Sawdust makes a good coarse barrier around tender plants, also acting as a desiccant that dries the slug out. Hardwood sawdust is most effective, and some people recommend cedar or oak.


    Copper Rings or Discs. Solid copper rings/discs of various diameter, used to encircle single or small groups of plants to inflict a mild electric shock on the unsuspecting slug. Look for rings that clip together. These are easy to slip round established plant stems, or join together to form a larger barrier.

  • Ita Ita on May 07, 2017

    Trays of beer, they love it and die happy 🍺🎊

  • 512181 512181 on May 07, 2017

    I used to make yeast and sugar mixture for my slugs. I would save plastic cups or container with lids. Cut openings, like windows in the container about 1-2" from bottom. Pour the yeast and sugar mixture in the container and set it at ground level. The lids keep the rain out. You can take lids off, toss the drowned slugs and pour in new mix. This works very well. http://www.wikihow.com/Get-Rid-of-Slugs-and-Snails-With-Yeast I just used regular yeast and no salt.

  • Teresa Dowden Teresa Dowden on May 07, 2017

    Put crumbled up egg shells around your flowers. The sharp edges cut them.

  • Linda Johnson Linda Johnson on May 07, 2017

    Eggshells work. That being said, you can get a pound of Diatomaceous Earth for about a dollar and put around your plants. (It's harmless to humans.) What I found worked for me was sprinkling a little borax in a bowl of water. It attracts slugs and kills them. (Kind of like using beer, but we didn't have beer, so I used a teaspoon of borax in a pint of water.)

    • See 1 previous
    • Linda Johnson Linda Johnson on May 08, 2017

      We came upon the borax solution by accident. We have a Rainbow vacuum cleaner. We put borax in the water because we have dogs and want to keep the air fresh smelling. We live out in the country and have a septic tank, so I don't dump the dirty water down the toilet. I dump it in a 5 gallon bucket with holes in it, on our property. I let the water drain out and then dump it later. When I went to dump out the solid waste, I found that the bottom of the bucket was filled with slugs. I was astounded. Still works. We don't have much of a problem with slugs, now!

  • Eliza Spear Eliza Spear on May 07, 2017

    Get a couple if toad shelters in your garden to encourage them to live in your garden. They will eat the slugs and keep

    other insects under control as well. also don't discourage snakes as garter snakes eat slugs.

  • Eco Lady...... Eco Lady...... on May 07, 2017

    Get a duck...


  • Eliza Spear Eliza Spear on May 08, 2017

    If you google it you can find out how to make one...usually an overturned claty pot propped so they can get in will suffice but I have seen instructions online