Planting snapdragons can help keep slugs away naturally, as the flowers contain compounds that are toxic to the pests while remaining safe for humans. The advice comes as slugs become more noticeable during autumn, thriving in damp conditions and gathering beneath plant pots and among decaying leaves.
Why snapdragons work against slugs
Jane, a gardener and founder of Snap Dragon Life, said she accidentally discovered the repellent effect after planting seedlings. She said: "I planted out my rows of carefully nurtured seedlings - cornflowers, marigolds, poppies, cosmos, nigella, snapdragons. Within two days, the slugs had eaten everything but the snapdragons. Slugs don't like snapdragons."
Snapdragons hold less water than other plants and have a tough, leathery texture, making gardens seem less appealing to slugs, which then move elsewhere. They work best when planted near vulnerable plants such as lettuces, cabbages or other greenery that slugs usually target, and should also be positioned along garden pathways and perimeter fencing.
Alternative slug traps
For gardens with a serious slug problem, a beer trap can attract and kill the pests. Jane said: "Slugs love beer, any beer, even the terrible beer that people bring to parties, even failed home-brew. Save small jars or pots (single yoghurt pots work fine) and bury them up to their necks between where the slugs are likely to be living and your plants."
Fill the containers with beer, and slugs will be attracted to this instead of your plants. The creatures will find it difficult to escape the vessel and will die, making it a simple yet highly effective slug prevention technique.
Cereal offers an equally successful option when beer is not available, as it starts to ferment slightly when left outside, making it irresistible to slugs. Jane said: "The only thing better than beer in the mind of a slug is cereal. They can't resist it. Rather than using piles of bran which can get messy, I use cheap own-brand Weetabix-type cereal and again place it between the slugs and the crops."
Position the cereal inside a large receptacle, wait for the slugs to gather within it, then either extract the slugs manually or discard the entire receptacle to eliminate them. Jane said: "This is the way that I dealt with slugs in my first garden - logging the numbers in a weird serial killer-y garden notebook. I stopped counting when I got past 4,000. It is less messy if you combine it with the Weetabix technique. Simply leave the Weetabix for three days and then go out at night and collect up all the Weetabix that should by now be covered with feasting slugs."
