Snails are difficult to fight pests in the garden, which eat up the freshly planted lettuce in no time at all. It's no wonder that some gardeners prefer to grow their vegetables in raised beds - in the hope that the slimy fellows won't come up here. However, this hope is often in vain, because the animals can also climb vertical walls without any problems.

Even raised beds are not immune to snails

Natural home remedies for fighting snails - That helps

So if you find snails in the raised bed, you should act quickly. Since the animals reproduce quickly - and lay numerous eggs in the ground, from which the offspring are then recruited - containment is the top priority. However, one does not want to resort to chemical mace, especially in raised vegetable beds, as the organically grown vitamins should remain without any toxins. However, you can try the following proven home remedies first:

  • Fertilize your plants with coffee grounds. This contains a lot of nutrients, but snails don't like it.
  • Mulch around the plants with sawdust or wood shavings.
  • Lay strips of sheep's wool around the plants.
  • Plant sage, savory, and chamomile around the outer edges. The herbs keep snails away.

And last but not least: Make your garden bird-friendly, because many of the native garden birds like to eat snails.

Foraging decimates the snail offspring

In the case of an acute snail infestation, however, the first thing that helps is collecting them. Check your raised bed thoroughly (preferably in the early morning or late evening, as snails only come out of their hiding places at night) and remove any animals you find. A classic beer trap, but also bricks or wooden boards laid out in the bed will help you with the collection.

When nothing else helps: chemical club against snails

If the plague of snails is too extensive and you don't know what else to do: In terms of chemicals, slug pellets (7.49€) based on natural iron-III-phosphate are the least toxic and also the most environmentally friendly. Active ingredients such as methiocarb and thiodicarb, on the other hand, are highly toxic, also for beneficial garden dwellers, and for this reason alone should not be used. On the other hand, preparations with the active ingredient metaldehyde can be problematic for gardeners with dogs or cats: the pets are often very sensitive to the agent. In the soil, on the other hand, the water-soluble metaldehyde is completely dissolved into its components water and carbon dioxide.

tips

The best remedy for snails is thorough prevention. Read here how to make a raised bed snail-proof.

Category:

Vegetable garden