Slugs stripping potato plants

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hubballi

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Slugs stripping potato plants
« on: June 28, 2012, 17:11 »
After having almost 100% success with spraying garlic on the foliage of various plants to keep slugs and snails off, for some reason it isn't working with my Red Duke Of York potato plants. The first few weeks they kept off but this week they have stripped it almost bare. It's absolutely infuriating  :( I

Firstly, why would the same garlic work on some plants and not others ?

Secondly, will this decimation affect the growth of the potatoes ?

Thanks.

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mumofstig

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #1 on: June 28, 2012, 17:16 »
there are just so many of them this year, everybody is suffering  :(

If they strip all the foliage I suppose it will, the other thing is that you don't know what they are doing to the forming potatoes :(

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shokkyy

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #2 on: June 28, 2012, 17:30 »
I use the organic slug pellets, which have always worked very well for me. But I've never put down so many pellets before as I have this year. Normally I put them down once or maybe twice around vulnerable plants, and that's enough. This year I'm reapplying them every week, not because of rain but because they're being eaten by slugs :)

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Agatha

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #3 on: June 28, 2012, 17:36 »
Same here - I've always found a scattering of organic slug pellets have been all that's needed, but this year I am putting loads down every evening & by morning they are all gone...as are most of the plants they were supposed to protect.  Cucurbits are the worse affected, but there isn't anything they haven't had a go at.  It's driving me mad as I rely on my veg patch to help tide me over the winter when I don't earn so much money...they have decimated my marrows, leeks, carrots & cabbage & my brussels are just tiny stumps. Funnily enough, the one thing they aren't going for is lettuce, which is normally the most popular.
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hubballi

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #4 on: June 28, 2012, 19:35 »
Again, why do they leave some plants like Hostas that I have sprayed with garlic but not others ? It's this horrible humidity they love. I am going out with a torch tonight. I hardly saw any earlier this season until this weather kicked in.

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Salmo

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #5 on: June 28, 2012, 19:59 »
I have used the organiv ferric based pellets this year. Yesterday, in desperation, I resorted to the bad old blue ones and this morning the plot is a killing field.


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mumofstig

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #6 on: June 28, 2012, 20:10 »
I posted the same thing a few days ago, the organic ones don't seem to be working this year  :(

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hubballi

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #7 on: June 28, 2012, 20:40 »
The organic ones have never worked for me.

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Lulu

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #8 on: June 28, 2012, 21:12 »
My large plot is right by a stream with hundreds of frogs so I don't usually need to spread slug pellets around that much either but I did yesterday.  They have had a go at my sprouts - they are not quite stalks but were nearly there and they had had a go at the potatoes as well.  I never usually put pellets around the potatoes  at all  - but I have now.  I am using the 'organic' ones due to the frogs and wildlife around but will not hesitate to change if they don't work.  Hope next year is better.
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shokkyy

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #9 on: June 28, 2012, 21:31 »
I posted the same thing a few days ago, the organic ones don't seem to be working this year  :(

Oh, they're definitely working. You don't normally see the dead slugs but the snails take longer to die, and I've seen plenty of those dead or dying around my plants. There's just a ridiculous number of slugs and snails this year.

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Kirpi

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #10 on: June 29, 2012, 20:52 »
The answer for me has been to leave some dustbin and compost bin lids around for them to shelter under and the pond frogs come and dine out in my makeshift cafes.  Most mornings I find the shelters empty and my veggies are intact - so far.

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hubballi

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #11 on: July 03, 2012, 06:53 »
Again, sprayed with garlic (which works with everything else) only to find them all over the Red Duke Of York again.

Can anyone tell me why it doesn't work mysteriously on this one plant ?


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potatogrower

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #12 on: July 03, 2012, 08:14 »
in my garden i once counted around 30 to 40 black slugs one early night :blink:

i've had to use the blue slug pellets from wilko's because they started eating the fenugreek and i couldn't see where they were. they also had goes at the cabbage and cauliflower. pellets came out and caught 20 around the fenugreek with their slime everywhere and 5 around the cabbage. they haven't touched the potato's yet.

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moose

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #13 on: July 03, 2012, 08:49 »
Quote
Can anyone tell me why it doesn't work mysteriously on this one plant ?
Quote

Probably just a matter of taste, we all have different ones!

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viettaclark

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Re: Slugs stripping potato plants
« Reply #14 on: July 03, 2012, 09:02 »
I have 6 bags of spuds and it's only the Juliettes and Anyas which they go for.
I went slug hunting and the plants were HEAVING with HUGE brown slugs that were quickly snipped. I think this method is best.
I have also reverted to using the non-organic pellets in areas where the chooks can't go and they have been really effective. Slime splotches everywhere! Maybe the slugs get tolerant to the other organic poison?



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