Slug Prevention

It is that time of year—one warm dry weekend and gardeners want to get out and Plant! At least some lettuce seed.  Start the garden….but then, there are the slugs. How to avoid having your entire crop munched down to nothing overnight?

 I’ve fought this battle for years. When I first moved to the Pacific Northwest, I had never encountered hungry slugs. There would be one or two climbing around the garbage pails in New England, but nothing like the herd that slides through the garden every night here. My beans were munched down to stumps in two hours.  I went out with a flashlight and spotted them—tiny, slimy grey creatures with little horns seeking anything green. They lurked under the parsley during the day.  I stalked them with a fork and jar of soapy water, but that gave me nightmares. I tried beer traps, but that didn’t work. The slugs perched on the lid and looked down into the pool, but never dove. I sprinkled sluggo, which helped, but not enough. I still lost crops.

One year, I replanted a row of beans a few weeks later and they jumped out of the ground and put on a leaf a day, healthy and unmunched. What was different here? Timing. When I planted my seeds or seedlings when the ground was warm enough for them and there was enough light to support vigorous growth, they outgrew the slug munch. It was a revelation.

In retrospect, it seems obvious. Gardeners have been gardening for hundreds of years, planting seeds at the recommended times. If there was a way to push the season forward, it would already be discovered. Nineteenth century farmers were far more eager for the first green sprouts than I am; they did not have access to the grocery store. The collective knowledge is far greater than my own. I need to heed it. So, now, I let my garden be during those first, false warm days in late January. I repair the raised beds, maybe build a trellis, dream over the seed catalogs, or take a long walk in the woods. In early February, I will plant the first round of spring crops in six-packs and raise them under lights in my classroom.  But nothing goes in the ground until late March.  It’s not perfect, but I am no longer stalking slugs by a dim flashlight before bedtime.