Slugs and Hostas
By : Tim Gibb, Integrated Pest Management Extension Specialist

Slimy, slithering, slugs!. These legless, soft-bodied, grayish-brown pests leave an unmistakable trail of sticky, viscous secretion from their bodies where-ever they crawl-never a pretty picture, particularly when they also damage your favorite plants.

Many kinds of plants may be damaged by slugs. Hostas are a favorite because they are not only a preferred food, but they also help create conditions that are most suitable for slug re-population. Wet, humid and shady areas are where slugs like to spend the day. Under the hostas' shaded leaves is ideal. During the evening slugs are much more prone to move about the plant, and that is when they do their feeding, rasping off the upper epidermal layer of the leaf.

Slugs can be hand-picked from plants, which is a nasty job, or they may be baited into a trap. Beer baited traps seem to be quite popular. The idea is to place a small amount of beer into a flat, open, container buried in the soil up to its lip. Enough beer is added to cover the bottom of the container to about 1/4 inch. The fermenting yeast in the beer is highly attractive to the slugs, which crawl right into the dish, get drunk and drown. Animal rights activists suggest that "if slugs gotta go, this is the preferred method...they barely feel a thing".

Commercially available slug baits (containing metaldehyde) can also be very effective. One product called Measural, is a slug control bait that comes in a small pellet formulation that can be applied precisely where the slugs like to hide during the daytime, under the shade of plants.
Small boards, bricks or other debris laying on the soil can also become a trap for slugs. Lifting these each morning and removing or treating the slugs there can control the population. The old method of applying a pinch of salt directly to the back of a slug definitely works. The salt literally sucks the moisture right out of the slug and death follows quickly.

Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. The salt method allows one to witness the agonizing death of the slug. Revenge is sweet, particularly when the slugs have really caused damage. The commercial slug baits last longer and may only need to be applied 2 or 3 times during the season. The beer trap method is slightly more expensive and does require a daily reapplication. Since only a small portion of a bottle needs to go to the trap each day, finding proper disposal of the rest of the bottle is required. (Slugs or no slugs, some gardeners have become avid believers in the beer trap method).

More Information

Entomology Extension Publication - Slugs in Homes, Gardens, and Greenhouses (PDF)

Quick Facts

(Photo of Slug)

Many kinds of plants may be damaged by slugs. Hostas are a favorite because they are not only a preferred food, but they also help create conditions that are most suitable for slug re-population.