hedgehogs

maighreadb

Hi All,
I'm 3 years ino veg growing and I've been doing my best to stay organic but the slugs are driving me crazy, I have surrounded my raised beds with copper, I collect (hundreds) of the things twice daily in salty water, I even bought nematobes (excuse spelling) which are supppose to eat slugs but I saw no difference in their numbers, I would love to get a hedgehog, my site is almost an acre,fenced in but with lots of overgrown hiding spots, has anyone out there got any information or advice on where ,when or how ?
Thanks in advance
Maighreadb

Quartet

maighreadb wrote: »

Hi All,
I'm 3 years ino veg growing and I've been doing my best to stay organic but the slugs are driving me crazy, I have surrounded my raised beds with copper, I collect (hundreds) of the things twice daily in salty water, I even bought nematobes (excuse spelling) which are supppose to eat slugs but I saw no difference in their numbers, I would love to get a hedgehog, my site is almost an acre,fenced in but with lots of overgrown hiding spots, has anyone out there got any information or advice on where ,when or how ?
Thanks in advance
Maighreadb

Hedgehogs are protected under the wildlife Act so it is illegal to catch / trap them or otherwise buy / sell them... you could try to encouage them into the garden by leaving unused wood piles and cat food out on a saucer but you may end up with other undesirables!

My solutions is to go get yourself two or more female ducks. Khaki Cambells are a good breed and are voracious slug eaters. Although it may be necessary to prevent the ducks from some of your more temting veggies they will nornally go after the slugs first. I send mine in pre planting and allow day / evening supervised access then put them back to their own pasture. The bonus is that the ducks will lay eggs & slugs are a great source of protein for ducks resulting in good egg laying. I used to have slugs the size of bog ponies when I first started growing veggies - now they are virtually under control. Dont get a male duck (Drake) as they just spend all there time annoying !! the females....

old boy

old jam jars bean tins etc buried neck deep in the ground, 3/4 fill them with either guiness or beamish, a lot more effective than beer in my trials, on the bbc gardening website there is a video on how to make a hedgehog nest.

bugsntinas

Quartet wrote: »

Hedgehogs are protected under the wildlife Act so it is illegal to catch / trap them or otherwise buy / sell them... you could try to encouage them into the garden by leaving unused wood piles and cat food out on a saucer but you may end up with other undesirables!

My solutions is to go get yourself two or more female ducks. Khaki Cambells are a good breed and are voracious slug eaters. Although it may be necessary to prevent the ducks from some of your more temting veggies they will nornally go after the slugs first. I send mine in pre planting and allow day / evening supervised access then put them back to their own pasture. The bonus is that the ducks will lay eggs & slugs are a great source of protein for ducks resulting in good egg laying. I used to have slugs the size of bog ponies when I first started growing veggies - now they are virtually under control. Dont get a male duck (Drake) as they just spend all there time annoying !! the females....

do ducks need any special care?we have 1/2 acre and was thinking of fencing off a section and putting in a pond would that be ok for a couple and what about cats/foxes are they likely to be a problem for ducks?

Belfast

maighreadb wrote: »

Hi All,
I'm 3 years ino veg growing and I've been doing my best to stay organic but the slugs are driving me crazy, I have surrounded my raised beds with copper, I collect (hundreds) of the things twice daily in salty water, I even bought nematobes (excuse spelling) which are supppose to eat slugs but I saw no difference in their numbers, I would love to get a hedgehog, my site is almost an acre,fenced in but with lots of overgrown hiding spots, has anyone out there got any information or advice on where ,when or how ?
Thanks in advance
Maighreadb

Nematodes only work for 6 weeks and you may need to repeat the treatment.

Quartet

bugsntinas wrote: »

do ducks need any special care?we have 1/2 acre and was thinking of fencing off a section and putting in a pond would that be ok for a couple and what about cats/foxes are they likely to be a problem for ducks?

Where I am from in the sticks (Co. Carlow!) has a pond and plenty of grazing. You will neeed to fence them from predators. Ducks will need to be moved around as well as they will eventually dig up an area if they are there for any lenght of time. Go for an egg laying variety like Khaki Cambells not Aylesburys which are not as hardy. A waterproof box with a door to put them into at night and a feed of grain etc once a day. Generally they are easy to look after

Munster Gal

Forget the hedgehog - we have a family of them living under the garden shed and I'm plagued with slugs. I use a combined approach - nematodes, copper tape, beer traps, eggshells and cocoa shell mulch. It doesn't get them all but it helps. The ducks are probably the best option - so jealous - I'd love some but the cats and dog wouldn't approve!!!

bugsntinas

Quartet wrote: »

Where I am from in the sticks (Co. Carlow!) has a pond and plenty of grazing. You will neeed to fence them from predators. Ducks will need to be moved around as well as they will eventually dig up an area if they are there for any lenght of time. Go for an egg laying variety like Khaki Cambells not Aylesburys which are not as hardy. A waterproof box with a door to put them into at night and a feed of grain etc once a day. Generally they are easy to look after

cheers for that.

Sonnenblumen

Nematodes being very limited in their effectiveness are an expensive joke of a solution. Copper bands fine but conspicuous at best otherwise unsightly.

Coffe grinds limited effect but better looking than broken eggshell or sharp stone. Surprised nobody mentioned frogs, but at the end of the day, more careful selection of planting and a sharp secateurs is probably a more prudent solution?

Gives a whole new meaning to lamping at night!:D