Slug and Snail Information for the Master Gardener

The more you know about these creatures, the better you will be able to sell and make recommendations how to best use our slug and snail products. No one seems to take these little guys seriously enough until their crop, ornamental plant or landscape is damaged.

Please refer to the “SLUG FACTS”. Yes, some of the facts seem quite laughable but the main gist of these facts is, these creatures are unbelievably hardy, resilient, smart, prolific, and devastating to the life of any plant material they come in contact with. TAKE THEM SERIOUSLY!!

Too many times, a serious slug/snail problem is misdiagnosed as “cutworm” or a nutritional problem. So, on go the insecticides and fertilizers with repeat applications –because the problem isn’t getting any better. Meanwhile the slug/snail population is having a heyday, increasing by the minute! The only control here is the death of their food source!

These pests spend most of their time underground or hiding in dark, damp places under plant material, boards, rocks, ect. When you see them, you are seeing only a small percentage of the population. Another 95% are in hiding, eating roots, breeding, laying eggs, resting. Being nocturnal, they take turns moving in on their supper, devouring plant material equal to their weight, from evening to early morning.

They have extremely keen olfactory senses and often will travel great distances from their secure hiding places to their food source, while marking their own scent so they can find their way home after dark. Not all plant material is desired by these pests, and in fact they can be highly selective feeders, using receptors located in the tentacles. This allows them to discriminate between plant material which is desirable, repellent or toxic.

All of these factors are very important in determining how to best control them. Metaldehyde is the most used and very effective pesticide for slug and snail control. Metaldehyde kills through both ingestion and contact. If slugs/snails crawl across metaldehyde, it is taken up through the foot (see diagram) into the system, causing poisoning.

Metaldehyde itself can be a repellent. Therefore, it is essential that a proper balance be accomplished in a formulation along with attractants, feeding stimulants, and availability to the metaldehyde—we have to trick them! A higher % of metaldehyde is not the key. (Dead at 3.25% is just as dead at 4% or 7.5%), the proper balance is the key.

Timing of application greatly increases your ability to receive maximum control. At the first sign of traits, apply slug and snail product. This will treat the emerging adult pests. Then in approximately 10-14 days, apply a second application to control newly hatched population. An ideal application is done late in the day near feeding time, with a sunny, warm day following to aid in the desiccation of sick and dying pests.

Everybody wants to see dead bodies! It is important to note that all dead bodies are not necessarily visible—many crawled off to die both above ground and below ground. The real test of successful application is crop recovery. New healthy plant growth tells the real story!

OR-CAL takes slug and snail control very seriously and continues to do research and development to improve our already excellent products. We will be sure to let you know what we come up with next.

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