Do you straw your strawberries?

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Do you straw your strawberries?
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cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Wed Mar 02, 05 10:03 am Post subject:

Judith, in a garden like that you're right, you can't win by chemical means

My own garden at home is smaller, walled on three sides, bordering on a fourth by the shed and a fence leading to the neighbours garden. We get more snails than slugs. In the first year tending this garden I did use a slug poison (a pet-safe one), but since then I've rarely had need to take such steps. But it's so radically different to your garden!

moggins

Joined: 24 Feb 2005
Posts: 942
Location: Gloucester

Posted: Wed Mar 02, 05 10:21 am Post subject:
Did anyone ever watch the episode of River Cottage where he spent every night hunting them down with a torch. I roared my head off then, not anymore though

judith

Joined: 16 Dec 2004
Posts: 22789
Location: Montgomeryshire

Posted: Wed Mar 02, 05 10:29 am Post subject:
The people who bought our old house didn't appear to be gardeners, so I imagine they have put the whole lot down to gravel, and are probably living there contentedly without giving the slugs a second thought. After 5 years struggling there, my current garden is absolute bliss.

Pilsbury

Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 5645
Location: East london/Essex

Posted: Thu Mar 03, 05 11:44 am Post subject:

My garden has a little concreate gully running right down one side with lots off shrubs just above in my neighbours garden, The gully is a bout 6" deep and 3" wide made when the neighbours thought it would be a good idea to edge their garden with the concreat fence bases like mine is and so is an aboslute haven for slugs and snails who come out every night to feast but we cant get at in the day so I have resorted to chemicl means of a light scattering of pellets every few weeks, just got to wait till the whole thing is filled up with empty snail shells

chrissy

Joined: 20 Feb 2005
Posts: 238
Location: Pangbourne

Posted: Thu Mar 03, 05 6:45 pm Post subject:
I had limited success last year laying down bran flakes around a hosta. The slugs ate the bran flakes but left the hosta completely alone - not a single hole in it. It's supposed to make the slugs blow up (I didn't hear any bangs so it must be blow up as in balloon). It's worth a try. Our strawberries aren't bothered by slugs - just damn squirrels who chew through the cage.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Thu Mar 03, 05 6:50 pm Post subject:
I think that's the problem I have. If the slugs don't get 'em then the mice might. I'm moving the bed a bit further up the garden so the greys may get them. I just hope the fox leaves 'em be as he ate my wine grapes last year. I can see the strawberry bed turning into a fortress this year. :twisted Thanks for all the suggestions, plenty to try.:

Nanny

Joined: 17 Feb 2005
Posts: 4520
Location: carms in wales

Posted: Thu Mar 03, 05 7:26 pm Post subject: strawberries

for the last couple of years i have grown them in an old butlers sink, well off the ground with stone chippings on the furface

i had a good crop (not enough to make jam or anything but for the size of sink not bad) and the only problem i had was birds getting them or greyhound 1 helping himself as he went by

they stayed clean as well and you can feed them with tomatoe food during the season

works for me

Tristan

Joined: 29 Dec 2004
Posts: 392
Location: North Gloucestershire

Posted: Thu Mar 03, 05 11:42 pm Post subject:

Some while ago on Gardeners World they did a feature on allotment fruit growing with a chap who built a raised bed for his strrawberries from some scaffolding pudlocks in an X shape, joined with poles, and lined with chicken wire then carpet, filled with compost and soil.
He put a trickle hose from a water butt for irrigation, smeared the legs with vaseline, and had a huge crop of fruit.
Anyone feeling creative?

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sat Mar 05, 05 6:51 pm Post subject:

I was thinking of putting my strwberries in those big hay-rack kind of hanging basket thingies on my garden shed (the damn slugs would probably learn to abseil!)

In general, I am quite a mild-mannered person, content to share my garden with garden critters, and weather a few losses. But slugs just eat everything before it has a chance to grow, so I'm on the offensive. Relying on one single method has never worked, so I'm going to try a barrage and see if it makes a dent. I once collected over 300 slugs in about an hour of hunting - the question then is what do you do with them? We put them on the barbeque in that instance. Dissolving in salt water is messy (and pretty cruel) I have put them in the freezer to kill them before, and taken them to the local park and fed them to the ducks. A lot of dissaproving and slightly shocked glances from mums and tots!

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sat Mar 05, 05 6:58 pm Post subject:

wellington womble wrote:

I have put them in the freezer to kill them before, and taken them to the local park and fed them to the ducks.

Do you defrost them first?

You could also try microwaving them, a tad messy and probably unethical.

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sat Mar 05, 05 7:35 pm Post subject:
ugh! Do your chickens eat them? Fingers crossed, if we get this house, then I'll have plenty of room for chickens, and I'll be ecstatic if they eat slugs (even if I have to catch them first!)

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sat Mar 05, 05 7:44 pm Post subject:
Yes they do eat slugs. The small black and brown ones, not the huge monsters. The hens also like snails and will eat the large ones if we crush them. (Some books and people avoid feeding their hens slugs and snails due to the risk of parasites. We take care to ensure our girls are routinely wormed and they seem happy).

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Sun Mar 06, 05 12:02 pm Post subject:

that's another good reason to get some then - Oddly enough, I can think of lots of reasons to get chickens, and eggs are quite a long way down the list! Compost, pest control, kitchen waste disposal and greenhouse heating are all scheduled in to their diaries.

If we get the new house, there is a village pond, on which someone has put a house for the ducks (and a garden gnome!) so the chicken's will have to share! Sure there won't be a shortage though!

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sun Mar 06, 05 3:21 pm Post subject:

wellington womble wrote:

That's exactly why we got them. Just as well as our don't lay that many and tend to go broody. Treacle is laying quite well again and they make good pets (don't give them too many treats).

julian smith

Joined: 20 Mar 2005
Posts: 2
Location: slough berkshire

Posted: Sun Mar 20, 05 8:55 pm Post subject:
Have heard a romour that your local barber may help you out ,put hair around the borders acts like hundreds of sharp needles towards the slugs

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