Black slugs friend or foe?

Stingo · May 5, 2010

Are black slugs friend or foe?

Because - I rescued one yesterday from my big council compost bin!!!! and put it onto my garden!!!!

Then worried about it afterwards....

I do think they are good for the garden though.

loopy lou · May 5, 2010

i go out at night with a torch and collect slugs and snails

then i feed them to my chook and ducks for brekki

sorry to be so harsh but slugs decimate plants and are not a gardeners friend

i prefer this to putting slug pellets down which may harm birds hedgehogs etc

loopy

Marley Farley · May 5, 2010

:thumb: Hi Stingo, have to say don't like slugs full stop..!!!!!! This may help you decide...

Britain has few serious pests compared with the tropics where all vegetation in a whole region can be wiped out by insects such as locusts. However we do have one pest that can, under certain circumstances, destroy most of our crops. No gardener needs two guesses as to what this is; it has to be the slug.
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The Black Slug[/align]
When allotment holders were asked recently to name the crops that most frequently suffered from pest attacks, brassicas and potatoes headed the list. In both cases slugs were seen as the main pest responsible, and overall they were blamed for causing the most damage to vegetables. In response to this, slug pellets lead the field as the most used pesticides.
You are probably now thinking that once again a carefully conducted survey has uncovered what we all knew anyway. But perhaps we have more to complain about than you might have realised. Britain is the slug capital of the world. Nowhere else has such ideal conditions for a broad range of slug species, for our cool, damp summers and warmish, wet winters allow slugs to be active, breeding and feeding for so much of the year. Added to this, we have recently suffered a succession of milder winters, and cooler, wetter summers. Normally icy conditions kill off a percentage of slugs and prevent the remainder from breeding and eating our crops for a while. Similarly, hot, dry weather kills slugs, which have to burrow deep into the ground to find the moist conditions that they need to survive. Meanwhile they give us a break - until we get out the hosepipe to water the beans, of course, and bring them all back to the surface!
SLUG IDENTIFICATION

To control any pest it is essential to know something about the beast. In this instance identification of the various types of slug is desirable, because not all of them cause problems in the garden. As explained later, overuse of slug poisons can be counter productive in that you risk killing off the predators that are helping to control your slug population. Such poisons should therefore be used, if used at all, only when and where a serious problem is seen to be developing, involving a slug species that is known to attack the crop you are growing. Once you have identified the species and can learn a little about its habits, you might well find that there are non-chemical options that are effective controls.
There are around thirty species of slug in Britain (plus some exotics in glasshouses). Only a minority pose any serious problem and four of the worst and most numerous of these that cause damage in gardens are described below. For more detailed identification of slugs you might like to refer to one of the books listed at the end of this article.
The Field Slug (Derocereas reticulatum)

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The field slug is small - up to 4 cm - and usually grey/fawn in colour with darker flecks. It has a short truncated keel or ridge on the back at the tail end. The underside, or sole, is whitish with a darker zone along the centre. The mucus is colourless or white.
The field slug is a surface-feeding specialist typically found infesting lettuces and cabbages. In fact it eats almost all our crops, from carrots and beans to spinach and tobacco, from celery and tomatoes to orchids and cacti. It is a major pest of cereal crops and will even eat potato haulms.
The Garden Slug (Arion hortensis Agg.)

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The garden slugs are a group of small blackish slugs up to 3 cm, with a paler side stripe. They have no keel and are distinguishable from similar species by their rounded cross section. The sole is yellow or orange; the mucus the same colour.
As burrowers and surface feeders, the garden slugs attack both leaf and root crops. Typically they attack at ground level, severing the stems of young beans or marrow plants for example. They will also climb up and attack the heads of cauliflowers and many other plants or burrow down to eat the roots of turnips or beetroot. It is a major pest of potatoes attacking both tubers and foliage and has been known to penetrate the soil to as much as a yard's depth so nothing is safe from this slug.
The Keel Slug (Tandonia budapestensis)

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The keel slug is a larger species up to 6 cm. Usually dark grey/olive in colour, it has a keel, with a yellow or orange stripe along the ridge. The sole is pale, the mucus colourless. Typically it curves into a sickle shape when contracted.
A burrowing specialist, notorious for its destruction of potatoes, it will in fact attack most root crops and is difficult to control as it spends most of its time underground.
The Black Slug (Arion ater)

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The black slug can he very big: a length of up to 20 cm has been recorded. Its colour is very variable - white, red, orange or grey are all common although black is most usual, often with an orange fringe. There is no keel, and the skin is coarse and granular. The sole is pale, sometimes orange, and the mucus is white. The black slug may rock from side to side when disturbed!
Familiar to all gardeners because of its spectacular size, the black slug is rarely as destructive as the three smaller species described above but can cause damage in spring to seedlings of many kinds. Later, when its preferred diet of rotting vegetation, fungi, manure and even dead animals is more readily available, it causes little damage in the garden - other than promoting heart failure if you step on one when feeding the cat at night. :lollol:
Click to expand...

Alice · May 5, 2010

I don't rehome them Stingo.

ClaraLou · May 5, 2010

Yeeuck! So far, I haven't had quite as many in the garden as usual. I think the cold winter may have delayed their activities somewhat. However, I'm sure I could find a fair few for you, Stingo, should you wish to start a Slug Sanctuary.

Sussexgardener · May 6, 2010

Stingo, you can have some of the slugs that seem to adore my garden. How would you like them sent to you - jiffy bag ok?

I'm afraid any I find get 'the snip'...

Stingo · May 6, 2010

:dh:Okay, so i made a big mistake...I'm going to find him today and chop him in half, to be honest that's what I usually do but in my moment of madness thought he was a goody.

Thanks for all your answers

Stingo

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Black slugs friend or foe?

Stingo Gardener

loopy lou Gardener

Marley Farley Affable Admin! Staff Member

Alice Gardener

ClaraLou Total Gardener

Sussexgardener Gardener

Stingo Gardener

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Black slugs ?

Cutting Back Salvia Black and Blue

How to prune my Blackcurrant Bush, would welcome advise please.

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Black slugs friend or foe?

Stingo Gardener

loopy lou Gardener

Marley Farley Affable Admin! Staff Member

Alice Gardener

ClaraLou Total Gardener

Sussexgardener Gardener

Stingo Gardener

Blackbirds and slugs

Black slugs ?

Cutting Back Salvia Black and Blue

How to prune my Blackcurrant Bush, would welcome advise please.

Black Spot and Suckers

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