Roses are still growing flowers in autumn, and can be easily damaged or not grow properly if you do not deal with slugs eating them. Luckily, there is a simple way to keep slugs away from roses.
Katherine McPhillips and Vita Molyneux Travel reporter
13:42, 08 Oct 2025
Use coffee-infused water on your roses every few weeks to protect them from slugs(Image: Getty)
Roses are particularly at risk during autumn as many continue producing blooms, and they can suffer damage or fail to develop correctly if slugs aren’t prevented from devouring them. Slugs become a major issue in autumn since they flourish in wet conditions and fallen foliage provides additional hiding spots throughout the garden.
It’s essential to eliminate any slugs feeding on roses because they can slice through shoots, preventing them from hardening and entering winter dormancy. This heightens the chance of frost damage, potentially weakening the plant and causing flowering difficulties come spring.
Fortunately, Angelo, a specialist from Deep Green Permaculture, has revealed it’s incredibly simple to stop slugs from devouring roses – just scatter used coffee grounds around your garden.
Slugs tend to be attracted to roses in autumn since they tend to still be growing flowers(Image: Getty)
Angelo explained: “Since caffeine is toxic to slugs and snails, it can be used as a barrier can deter them from crossing treated areas, and as a means of eliminating them after they come in contact with it.”
Coffee grounds possess acidic and rough properties that can repel slugs by causing irritation to their bodies and dehydrating them, reducing their likelihood of crawling across the surface, reports the Express.
Caffeine is also recognised for disrupting slugs’ nervous systems when absorbed through their skin, potentially harming or destroying them at higher levels. However, roses are quite fond of coffee grounds as they can serve as a natural fertiliser, providing a small nitrogen boost that helps maintain healthy foliage as the plants prepare for winter dormancy.
This also attracts earthworms which aerate the soil, contributing to root health during the colder months.
Utilising coffee grounds is a straightforward yet highly effective method to deter slugs from your garden and fortify roses, resulting in larger blooms come next spring.
A simple way to deter slugs is to use coffee grounds to make a natural barrier around roses(Image: Getty)Here’s how to use coffee grounds to prevent slugs from feasting on roses:
All you need to do is gather coffee grounds from your morning brew, or check if any local coffee shops offer them free of charge to gardeners in your area.
It’s crucial to only use leftover coffee grounds as they’re quite strong and need to be diluted in water before use to avoid over-fertilising the soil.
Then, simply blend one part coffee grounds with three parts water. Allow the mixture to sit for at least 24 hours.
If desired, you can strain the coffee grounds from the liquid as it’s the water that deters slugs.
Pour the coffee-infused water into a watering can and then moisten the soil around the rose plant or where you’ve seen roses previously. Apply after rainfall or every few weeks, and slugs should cease nibbling on your roses for the remainder of the year.
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