So the pumpkin patch was sailing along smoothly. Sixty nine cents worth of seeds, nine plants, a little dirt, a new continent to share Halloween with - man this is fun!Entering August we were giddy at the first sight of 'mangos' - baby pumpkins with a whopping three months to mature between now and first frost.
Then the snails showed up. Not the escargot type snails in the shell. We're talking the big brown slug looking snails that eat their own if they met an untimely demise. The snails decided they liked to snack on the mangos. The baby pumpkin pictured in a previous post is toast. Nuttin but a rind.
Since then I've declared war. Been stepping over snails all summer. Nearly wrecking my bike to avoid them in the road. Not anymore baby. Now I patrol the yard with a salt shaker every night and watch them writhe. Put a salt ring around the pumpkin patch with some effect.
-Syndrome(to Mr. Incredible): 'That's a little dark for you, don't you think?'
-Mr. Incredible: 'It'll be easy, like breaking a twig.'
Mormor one upped me by suggesting I put out a frisbee full of beer. Within 5 minutes we had five slither up to the bar. Supposedly they can't resist the smell of the beer and they drink themselves to death.
Needless to say the pumpkin patch experiment has taken a discouraging turn. Here's to hoping we get at least a couple pumpkins this season.
2 comments:
man that picture is worth the double click. do you suppose there were little burps rolling away from the party?
Somehow I think this message is from dad and not Baker or Spam.
I've been fighting these slimy guys for years. I think I'll pass on the double click.
Slugs and snails don't like copper either. Copper wire or edging material around your plants is supposed to work but I've never tried it. Might be a good use for all those coins in the penny jar. After years of organic gardening, I selectively put out special slug/snail poison. I wouldn't use it with kids, pets or edibles though plus you might have tougher restrictions than we do in the states. Theoretically, they don't like dolomite which is sharp edged crushed shells.
The salt can kill your pumpkins if you put too much down near them. If I see them, I prefer the slice in half method. It sounds bad but it's not as gross as melting them with salt.
Snails and slugs like cool damp areas. They come out after a rain. Sometimes you can find their eggs and destroy them. They look like little translucent balls and are usually under rocks or leaves. It is so dry and hot here in the midwest that snails and slugs have not been much of a problem this year.
The beer works in the states too.
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