Gardening can become a slimy nightmare in the warm months, when vegetables, flowers, fruit are all voraciously chomped to destruction by slugs and snails.
"They like to eat the young seedlings of sown vegetables or ornamental plants, so you think, nothing will grow there then," says Christine Scherer from the Bavarian Garden Academy. So how do you become pest free?
"It's best not to use any poison at all," recommends Marja Rottleb from the German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU), but rather rely on "natural, preventative and control measures."
1. Remove them by hand: "Every slug and snail I collect prevents reproduction," says Scherer. It's best to collect them in the morning, evening and when it rains, as this is when they are most active.
It's a tedious process, but one way of making it a little easier is to lay boards in the garden. The gastropods will look for shady and cool places. If you turn the boards over in the morning, you will often find plenty underneath and easy to pick up.
Make sure you dispose of the creatures as far away from your garden as possible so they don't just head straight back to enjoy the delicacies.
2. Water correctly and build barriers: Slugs and snails like it moist, so it will help to water in the morning, says Scherer. The plants and soil will dry out during the day and they will have a harder time getting to your plants in the evening.
It also helps to erect barriers of sawdust or quartz sand around the plants. However, this only helps if it stays dry. Raised beds are also more difficult for critters to reach.
Another option is slug or snail fences, or copper tape stuck around raised beds or flower pots to keep them out.
3. Encourage beneficial insects: Fireflies, ground beetles and birds are natural enemies of slugs and snails. You can use this to your advantage.
"If you promote insect diversity in the garden, for example by having hedges and hiding places such as a pile of dead wood or a pile of stones, beneficial insects will come and eat the slugs and eggs," says Rottleb.
"A kind of mixed culture in the bed also makes it more difficult for the creature to eat the whole bed."
But as annoying as all their rampaging is, slugs and snails do help our ecosystem, the expert reminds, since they break down and utilize organic substances and are themselves food for other animals. Killing them all off, is simply not an option.
