ACK! Tiny snails!
 

Hi friends! I was happily getting ready for bed this evening when I glanced over at my catts to see how they where, when something tiny caught my eye! ACK! LOOK! These were all the ones I could see happily scooting around on the moss I have on the top (which was mildly moist from today's watering). How did this happen? These are indoor plants that I got about two months ago and repotted to a bark/charcoal/perlite mixture as soon as they were mine. I have never seen these little buggers before.

What do I do? I'm not even sure what type of damage they could do, but I don't suspect they would be at all beneficial. Rrrgh.

eeesh.:shock:

Thanks friends!

Oh dear! Maybe there were snail eggs in the moss. They are tiny little things! I use "Sluggo" pellets for the big snails we get here. But maybe you can just wash your plant down real good and repot. Better check all your plants really good, too. Some people just put a thin slice of apple right on the surface of the media in the evening and apparently it will draw the snails to it and then you can just discard them. Good luck!

Aparantly coffee is meant to kill them.

Take a look at Ray's "Home Remedies" info on his website which talks about that. It did seem to work for me.

First Rays' Home Remedies

I have used very strong coffee dregs to get rid of them on mounted plants and the apple as Susie mentioned .They eat the tender root tips and new growth ..I would re pot .

Those are commonly known as "orchid snails" or "bush snails", and are one of the most destructive pests one can get in a collection, and one of the more difficult ones to control. Standard snail baits are ineffective, with measurol - a restricted use pesticide here in PA - being one of the few known toxins. Being that I could not get that, I tried the coffee thing, and it appeared to work.

Keep that plant away from the others until you have eradicated them, or they will be in everything.

Thanks to all! I will try coffee today!!! And likely repot.

Tell me, should I leave the moss off the top?

I think I would at least until you are sure they are gone .. one way to check the others is to use the apple or slices of potato works best when the plant is on the dry side and slices are moist .. Take no prisoners !

I am trying to eradicate bush snails in my collection.

Measurol, which is restricted by Federal law to people with an applicator's license, is methylthio-xylyl-methylcarbamate. Sevin, which is easily available in garden stores, is naphthyl-methylcarbamate and both are cholinesterase inhibitors.

So I purchased some Sevin 5% dusting powder. At night I would apply this to the surface of the media in pots that has bush snails and it seems to be effective in killing snails that contact it. The other week I was reading an old book, "Orchid Biology" by Dressler, and there it was recommended to use Sevin as a drench for bush snails. So I purchased some liquid Sevin concentrate and applied that as a drench to my pots last weekend. Before I started using Sevin I had also tried drenching the pots with copper octanoate 1000 ppm. These treatments seem to have reduced the number of snails but even after the Seving drench last weekend I am still seeing some when I search at night. I will probably run through most of the pesticides that I have, applying them as a drench, to try to eradicate the snails.

I was also thinking of trying to drown them by submerging the pot in a bucket of water; I wonder how long it takes for a snail to drown.

If you are using the same media to re-pot, maybe you could boil or microwave it first. I have started microwaving bark chunks before using. that way they should be pest free and they moisten quicker than soaking overnight.

If you're in SoCal, I might be able to use your snails!

I own a Slug Eating Snake. This snake solely feeds on slugs and snails. If you're able to collect them, I could probably help you eradicate your problem with very few hassles.

These bush snails are tiny, only a few millimeters, not like the typical SoCal escargot snail. They spend much of their time hiding in the media so they are hard to collect and it would probably take a lot to make a meal for your snake.

A snake that only eats slugs and snails, that is interesting, I had never heard of that before.

Well that sucks...

Yes, there are actually several different species of snail/slug eating snakes.

Snakes in the genus Pareas are some of them.

There is also another species that I see sold on occasion, called the Cloudy Slug Eater (Sibon nebulata) are snail and slug eaters.

I think some Garter Snakes also eat slugs.

If he has used pesticides, it might hurt the snakes.

Please come to my yard and collect as many slugs and snails as you like...

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2

Hmm...

I think that can be arranged. My place is starting to run short on these pests.

You may PM me anytime if you wish. :biggrin:

Can you run the diluted coffee through the orchid pot without harm? Do you need to flush with water after? Thanks.

Good thing you found them before it's too late.
I first found out about these little snails last year when my favorite dendrobium's new shoots were being damaged. I knew something was chewing on them, but I didn't see anything bugs on them. So I observed at night. There they were! Those little snails partying on my orchid. I handpicked them all and squeezed them to death. :biggrin:

I lost one of the new shoots, but the rest eventually grew.

I tried beer (as I read somewhere it attracts them) but I don't think these small snails are attracted to beer at all.

I use slices of fruit or vegetable ( I've tried apples, carrots, cucumbers, potatoes all with good results) as a bait. Put them on top of the potting mix at early evening and periodically flip and check for snails at night and the following morning.

It is also a good way to see if other pots have these snails on them. My dendrobium was badly damaged, but two other pots also have snails and those plants do not seem to be affected at all. Maybe snails are eating roots in the center of the pot that I cannot see.

I still have snails on that same dendrobium and two other pots, but far less. like one or none depending on the night.
I probably will just repot them this next month.

Is coffee really effective without any harm to the roots???

Someone who tried coffee please leave feedback!

Can you run the diluted coffee through the orchid pot without harm? Do you need to flush with water after? Thanks.

Didn't mean to double post this.

Just sprinkle used coffee grounds on media surface

I've used half strength coffee soaks on orchids coming in from the greenhouse for the winter. I flush with clear water after. No harm done.

You can also get little snails with slices of raw potato placed around the top of the media over night. The snails come out to feed on the starch in it, pick them up in the morning and if there are snails in there you will see them on the underside of the potato. Do this over several nights.

Rosie, how long do you soak the orchids?

no one seems to ever mention diatomaceous earth as a mechanical pest detterent for snails and slugs. Its not fancy enough I guess.

I have small snails on some other plants I notice like the antheriums. That why they stay over yonder by themselves. Wondered why thems nails didnt like my orchids. BEC I use diatomaceous earth in my orchids, dust and all. Seems the sharp edges of the silica cuts the snails and slugs up and then they start to leak and die. They dont like to leak out and die. All of your remedies seem fine except the bombing of your plants with harsh chemicals. There is a better way. Says that DE is good for lots of pests and crawlies around the house and garden also. Orchids seem to like the diatomaceous earth. Its just not very fancy and requires no PHD to apply :biggrin:

I've used the coffee-pot dregs with alcohol as a drench and never flushed.

It varies, between 20min and a couple of hours depending on if I forget them. Probably I aim for about 20min.