May 9, 2009 Slug Attack

I checked on the garden the other day and noticed that the radish leaves were full of holes. I'm sure that this is only the first of many attacks from the thousands of insects in the fields. While I'm not 100% certain what eat the leaves, I was able to find a problem that has been getting worse with all the wet weather. Slugs. (the pill bugs supposedly are OK, I read that they only eat decaying matter).

After a quick Google search I learned that beer traps seem to be the most effective way of getting rid of them- at least the ones that you don't take care of by hand. So I marched into the local beer distributor and asked for the cheapest, crappiest beer they have. That's right you guessed it: Miller Light.

I set out a few plastic containers full of the "beer" and sunk it into the dirt about an inch. The You Bet Your Garden guy recommended that they stay above the soil an inch or so to keep beneficial insects from falling in, so I did. I also turned over all the boards lining the garden and flicked them all off into a tub of salt. I hope that will keep them under control!