Slugs, oh my!
I haven't experienced slug herbivory before, a bane of rainy climate gardeners. In the Piedmont, even in normal rainfall years, I don't think I've seen any slugs, much less experienced any damage to vegetables. But, as the Ronde de Nice (Eight-Ball) and Zucchini 'Romanesco' squash seedlings started to disappear overnight, hmm, with curiously chewed edges left on the remnants, I started to think about slugs. The slime and a culprit caught in the act confirmed my suspicions. Hmm, they love to eat seedlings, apparently. I AM a wildlife gardener, but it's hard to warm up to slugs, and I started searching for organic controls. Beer in dishes was one possibility (but my gardening companion didn't want to waste his craft brews, and it's apparently not all that effective); salt, diatomaceous earth, and coffee grounds are other potential treatments. But the most promising seems to be iron phosphate laced with some sort of irresistable bait (for slugs). The...