snails and grasshoppers eating buds
 

Dang, now that everything is growing and blooms are starting, I now have snails climbing all over and eating my buds. Plus, the dreaded lubber grasshoppers are joining in. I've been watering them and then putting down slug and snail bait- any other ideas? I sneak out at night with a flashlight and find and kill the grasshoppers (they're slower and easier to catch after dark) and now that they are full grown, chopping their little ugly heads off is the only thing that works.

You could go to Lowe's or Home Depot and look in the gardening section for products to take care of roses, flowers, ornamentals, and vegetables and use them.

For the common garden snails I use standard garden organic slug pellets from my local garden center. I try not to put them on the orchid medium, but arround the outside of the pots.

If they are the tiny tiny orchid snails that live in the post then aparrently most treatments don't work, but coffee is thought to kill them by drenching the medium in a strong coffee.

Coffee, hmm. Grounds or liquid?

I got the advise from Ray's website. Take a look here (about half way down the page)...
First Rays' Home Remedies
I actually just used a strong cup of liquid coffe (make sure it's cold).

Coffee took care of a snail a few months ago. I think it is also a repellent. I would drench medium and spray leaves with a 1:1 solution of coffee.

Now I have leafhoppers eating my chili pepper leaves, anyone know of a remedy? I have Imidclorprid Bayer systemic but do not know if it safe to use on chili peppers I eventually I want to eat!

I have problems with snails too but of gigantic proprtions....the shells are about 3-4 inches long...inside body huge.....Also birds want the petals of the flowers for building nests too!!.... i have put up jingle jangle wind chimes up and a couple disco balls to reflect light...has helped a little bit but no where enough.....HELP!!

For the big snails/slugs I'm using the standard pellets from the garden center. I sprinkle them arround the outside of the pots, haven't dared put them on the surface of the medium as I don't know what's inthe pellets.

The ones I use are certified for organic use but of course I don't know what you can get where you live.

RosieC , rogerman,stefano.
Thanks for your much valued information about slugs and I read all of them.
I have suffered a lot from them.
I will apply sand paper theory too.
What I do is I collect all of them into a shopping bag throw them into a nearby stream .Another method is when you find their thousand eggs in your soil when you dig it ( pastel yellow color beads) collect everything and hum.! You know the rest! Put them into your garbage bags.

Other wise They come out as thousands.

hmm.....Sorry I missed the post about using sandpaper, and I can't be out searching around at night with a flashlight, but if coffee works, would a tipsy snail just fall out of the pot.?

I think there's also something on Rays info about using eucalyptus or teatree oil as a deterant. I must go back and have a look.

Marion

He says leave small saucers of the oil near the plants as the pests don't like it, don't put it on your plants.

Also did you know that salt kills slugs and snails? You can try sprinkling that around the pots but not in them. Also as long as it's not going to get washed away every day.

Marion

Lately i have been sending one of my dogs into my nursery.... No rats or huge snails anymore yippeeeee

I read somewhere about adding copper coins to the pot to deter snails, never personally tried it though. No luck with grasshoppers myself. Those things love my hibiscus flowers. :((

I hate snails and slugs!!!! They are a problem here, too. I use Sluggo snail bait and it works well. However all snail bait will turn into little furry balls of mold when it gets wet... so that is a problem. Also, I have seen the tiny slugs. I must try the coffee. I only drink tea so I don't have any coffee at home. I am going to the McDonalds drive through for a couple large cups. If it works, I will buy some and brew a large pot for all my sluggy friends!

It is cheaper to buy cheap coffee at the 99 cent store and make some on your own than buy 2 cups at McDonalds. You can re use it, you can offer it to your visitors or learn to like it... And have a lot to keep slugs at bay! Even if you have no coffee maker you can boil it in a pot

Do you boil the stuff and throw hot coffee?

Slicing long cucumbers and putting the on pots attracts a lot of slugs and snails to. Check during the late evening / night as they are nocturnal.

Interesting, makes me wonder if I want to put them out in the summer. Wondering if it would help to put them up on some kind of table off the ground. Of course if they are mounted on trees that would not help. I am thinking of getting my husband to make be a slatted table to put mine on in the summer. Seems it would be easier to treat the table legs, at least it should keep the snails and slugs away. But, it is sooo cold here now, I have a long wait for summer.
Becky

in desperation earlier this year (the less toxic snail pellets I had bought weren't working like the previous brand I had which worked great) I just started saving my used coffee grounds, and then put that in my flower planter. I had read on a couple websites, that they had no success against snails and slugs using coffee - that in very high concentrations caffeine repels them, but our coffee is much too dilute - I tried anyway, cos I figured there was nothing to lose.
I encircled the Gerbera daisies (snails LOOOOOVE these) heavily with coffee grounds, and sprinkled some more around in general - I was quite surprised and happy to find it definitely helped! Haven't tried this with orchids - fortunately I don't have much trouble with snails on orchids *knocks wood* - sometimes get some on cyms tho ...

Try a shallow saucer of beer. The snails climb in, and they get drunk.