Gardeners are being advised to scatter grit and sawdust in their outdoor spaces in order to protect their gardens. With just a few days away from the beginning of the British summertime, many gardeners are enjoying the harvest of their hard spring work, while planting new flowers and crops to enjoy throughout the season.
However, with the increasing temperatures, many gardeners will find an influx of pests taking over their outdoor spaces. The weather is so hot that UKHSA has issued a yellow health alert for the Midlands, South and East England, Yorkshire and Humber, and London until Sunday, June 22, 6pm. The warm and moist conditions create the perfect environment for many pests to thrive and breed. As a result, plants and flowers suffer at the hands of these infestations.
Slugs are one of the pests that gardeners tend to complain about the most, according to Gardeners’ World. The slimy creatures feed on the new growth of plants, devour seedlings, and leave irregularly-shaped holes in leaves, stems, flowers and bulbs.
To make matters worse, the pests leave wet slime trails as evidence of their destruction. That is why experts recommend using natural barriers such as sawdust, sand, and horticultural grit to tackle slugs in gardens.
The materials make great barriers as “slugs find sharp or prickly materials uncomfortable to travel over”.
It is especially good to put in soil and not on the surface, as during the hot weather, slugs bury themselves in it to avoid dehydration. Also remember that they will need topping up regularly.
With temperatures hitting as high as 30C today and remaining hot for the rest of the week, gardeners should act quickly, whilst protecting themselves from the heat.
While this is a good way to deter slugs from gardens, Gardeners’ World reminded people that it is impossible to rid your outdoor spaces of the pest completely.
It wrote: “Despite your best efforts, some losses to slugs are inevitable. Accept that your garden is never going to be slug-free, and find ways to work around this.”
As well as using the natural barrier, gardeners should proritise the protection of their most vulnerable plants. The website also highlighted that gardeners should ensure there isn’t a ‘bridge’ of leaves between any plant pots as slugs can use it to travel from pot to pot.
Following these steps will help give your garden the best natural protection against slugs.