[mickwood]

I can start o see the workings of slugs on the allotment and need to think of things to do to stop them!

I'm hesitant to use slug pellets as I don't want birds eating the remnants of the slugs and digesting the same chemicals! So I was thinking a sprinkling of agg shells around individual plants and beer traps. How d I 'prepare' the egg shells? Do they need drying and then whizzed up into a powder or just roughly crushed? not sure how 'fine' they can be?

[Patricia]

I just roughly crush mine. Also try the garlic water treatment. It seems to be working here. Slugs hate garlic. Two garlic bulbs chopped up and boiled in two pints of water. The mixture is cooled, strained and then made back up to two pints. A desert spoon is then added to a full watering can and susceptible plants watered in the evening. This is a friends recipe. After straining I take the remains and boil again and let steep for a bit. Then drain and bottle up a batch at a time. Makes about 2 litres. I keep mine in the fridge.

Oh and keeps vampires away too.