Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: rockyracoon on April 30, 2010, 19:50

Title: Egg shells
Post by: rockyracoon on April 30, 2010, 19:50

I have been saving up egg shells for about 6 months now and have a healthy sized bag full all crushed up nicely, my intention is to spread them around the vegetable patch to keep the slugs off.  Do you think it will work?  :D

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: UrbanG on April 30, 2010, 20:07

I have heard it works but I have never tired it.
The idea is, its just like us walking over broken glass to get the the bottle of wine, after a few steps they would back off thinking- "NO PLANT is worth this pain"  :)

Must take a hell of a lot of eggs tho.

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: Spana on April 30, 2010, 20:12

Quote from: rockyracoon on April 30, 2010, 19:50

I have been saving up egg shells for about 6 months now and have a healthy sized bag full all crushed up nicely, my intention is to spread them around the vegetable patch to keep the slugs off.  Do you think it will work?  :D

I did the same some years ago.  For some reason I baked mine in the oven, cant remember why.  I saved them up for ages  but I never did it again so I dont think it could have worked enough to make it worth while.  But that could have been been because i crushed them in a food processor and perhaps they were to fine. 

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: DavidT on April 30, 2010, 20:58

No, it wont work. Slugs and snails put down a trail of slime to get them over such obstacles. Use pellets or a liquid slug/snail killer. :D

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: Elcie on April 30, 2010, 21:06

I used them last year and thought it worked ok.  I have saved the shells again this year, well my neighbour has, so will try it again.  Certainly doesn't do any harm and it is free and organic.

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: rockyracoon on April 30, 2010, 21:16

 :) thanks for your replies, I'm giving it a go but will get the proper stuff as a back up if it doesn't work.  How big do seedlings have to be before the slugs get em?

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: Elcie on April 30, 2010, 21:25

I think you would be better to ask how big do they have to be before the slugs don't get them!  In my experience the smaller the seedling the more likely it is to disappear after being slug supper.

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: Trikidiki on May 02, 2010, 11:17

Lots of slugs live in the soil.

If you put the shells around the edge of your patch you'll still have them in the soil but now they're trapped on your plot.

Use the shells around individual plants.

Title: Re: Egg shells
Post by: rockyracoon on May 02, 2010, 12:07

Oh, thanks trikidiki, didn't know that.  Will have to have a rethink.