Do you get annoyed every time you go outside to enjoy your garden and then you find your favorite plants have holes in their leaves all over? Chances are you have a slug infestation as these critters like to feed on the leaves of almost any plant in the garden. That means a lot of damage to your crops. Whether they’re nibbling on heads of lettuce or destroying young seedlings, they can destroy a whole range of ornamental plants and vegetables in spring. So if you are wondering how to prevent the plague of snails in May 2023, take a look at our article.
Snail plague in May 2023: What helps against it?
Snails are actually active all year round, but since they prefer the warm and humid weather of spring, we tend to notice activity in our gardens in spring. We have compiled the best methods to repel snails naturally and without harsh pesticides.
Water your garden in the morning
Snails need a moist environment to survive and lay their eggs. As a result, they are more active at night when temperatures drop and the ground becomes damp.
To easily keep them out of your garden, water the plants thoroughly but less frequently and preferably in the morning. This will ensure that they and the soil have dried out by evening when the snails are most active. However, the dry conditions of your garden will no longer attract them.
Drive away the snails with plants
Another method you can take to combat the ravenous garden critters is to harness the power of some plants that the snails just don’t like.
Aromatic plants like garlic, rosemary, fennel, aniseed and basil are unpleasant for the slugs and will help keep them off the beds.
Another plant that the gardening experts recommend is the poisonous foxglove. Plant it around your flower beds or at the garden entrance to ensure that critters do not enter your garden.
Snail plague in May 2023: Attracting predators to the garden
Controlling snails is often a time-consuming and difficult task, but experts recommend reducing their population by attracting hedgehogs, birds, frogs and toads to naturally control the plague.
Spring is the perfect time to make your garden more attractive to piebald’s natural enemies. Create your own garden pond, build bird feeders and waterers, and plant plants that naturally attract them.
Get rid of the snails with eggshells
Snails and especially nudibranchs, which do not have shells, prefer flat and smooth surfaces where they can move easily. Therefore, they are very sensitive to sharp and prickly objects.
The sharp-edged eggshells are a very effective method if you sprinkle them around plants as a barrier, as snails can injure themselves trying to crawl on them.
And the best part about this method is that the eggshells eventually decompose and feed the soil with nutrients. So use them in the garden instead of throwing them away.
You can also make a sharp barrier with pine needles, crushed seashells or walnut shells, and other prickly organic materials.
An environmentally friendly way to combat the snail plague is to spray the plants with a mixture of commercially available liverwort extract and water. A study by Jahn-Peter Frahm and Klaus Kirchhoff at the Botanical Institute of the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn proves that the reptiles avoid the treated plants even if they have no other food sources available. The effectiveness of the moss is that it contains very strong repellents against snails. And the best part about this method is that it doesn’t harm or kill piebalds, just deters them from the plants.
Mix 5 ml of liverwort extract with a liter of water and spray the plants with this solution weekly. You can increase the dosage as needed, although overdosing is not possible.
Keep the critters away with coffee
Coffee grounds used to be recommended as a natural way to keep snails out of the garden. One Study by USDA research team but proves that a caffeine solution is much more effective. Low concentrations keep the critters away, while higher concentrations could be lethal.
Follow these steps to properly use coffee against the snail plague.
Brew coffee using twice the amount of coffee grounds as usual and allow to cool.
Then pour the coffee into a spray bottle and spray the plants and soil in the garden liberally. Pay special attention to the spots where you noticed snails or slime trails.
Repeat the process 2-3 times a week or as needed.
Finally, in order not to damage the plants in your garden, we recommend that you always use natural control methods and avoid harsh pesticides.