How to get rid of snails?

Mary
by Mary
  10 answers
  • Dfm Dfm on Jul 05, 2018

    Broken egg shells or diacotimus earth. Both are sharp substances that the soft bodied snail should avoid or die trying to .

  • Rowgop (Pam) Rowgop (Pam) on Jul 05, 2018

    Can also put sand around plants. They don't like crawling over it.

  • Redcatcec Redcatcec on Jul 05, 2018

    Sprinkle Epsom salt around your plants, be careful to not get it on them-it will burn. The ES is magnesium sulfate and a valuable nutrient to the plants, it also dissolves snails and slugs.

  • Landsharkinnc Landsharkinnc on Jul 05, 2018

    some snails are 'good' -- they are predators on slugs and other snails .. https://www.buglogical.com/decollate-snails/ so be careful ... if common garden snails that are eating your plants, there are commercial snail baits availabale

  • Bonnie Greene Worsely Bonnie Greene Worsely on Jul 06, 2018

    We use egg shells, crushed up. Snails don't like to crawl across then, the sharp edges cut up their soft underbelly.

  • Mary Mary on Jul 06, 2018

    Thank you to all who gave me ideas I’m going to try them all

  • Landshark, I had decollate snails show up in my gardens. I thought, oh great another kind! Glad I researched and found they were the good guys before I started stepping on them!

  • Alison Savill Alison Savill on Jul 06, 2018

    Put some pots in garden with beer in they love beer they get drunk then you just throw them out

  • William William on Jul 06, 2018

    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.

  • Michelle Leslie Michelle Leslie on Aug 02, 2020

    Hi there Mary, it might sound silly but we have a few overturned flowerpots, with a stone placed under the rim to lift them up a bit, scattered around our garden. We check them every few days for snails. They like crawling inside. Grapefruit and orange halves work too. We also try watering our garden in the morning instead of the evening. Snails and slugs like moist conditions so by watering in the morning it gives the surface soil time to dry out by the evening when snails are most active.