The snow is thawing and as the soil temperature warms up and Spring approaches it time to think about controlling those garden pests.
Pests that prospered during 2012 were Slugs and Ants, and as soil temperature rises, now is a great time to consider preventative control.
Slugs – The key issue here is that we only worry about the slugs we see, but in fact one cubic meter of soil can contain 200 slugs. Slugs are hermaphrodite and each slug lays about 300 eggs in the soil. Two types of slug prevention are available to use; first slug killers e.g. pellets, and nematodes and barriers e.g. shells and copper tape.
The benefits of the nematodes, is that they get working earlier in the spring right down into the soil, and will keep regenerating until the food source has expired. Whereas slug pellets have to be applied in the right quantity, to be safe to pets and wildlife, and re applied every two weeks and only affect the slugs on the surface (always read the label and follow the instructions when using slug pellets).
Ants – These were are a big problem in lawns during 2012, whilst in only extreme cases do they kill a lawn, they easily disfigure the appearance of your pride and joy. The nematode works on the ants in your lawn work by aggravating rather than killing the ants, prompting them to move on.
So exactly what is a Nematode? It’s a natural organism, already present in our soil. They target specific garden pests giving us natural garden pest controls that are environmentally friendly, safe for children, pets and wildlife. All the nematodes in Nemaslug and the Nemasys range are naturally found in UK soil.
They are available on line through Amazon or other retailers and delivered direct to your door. ( Check www.nemasysinfo.com for latest stockists)
Three tips to get the best from your nematodes:
- Apply the nematode solution to moist soil
- It is best to do this during your evening watering as the soil won’t dry out so quickly, giving the nematodes time to go beneath the soil
- Plan to control slugs from early in the season when they are young and before they start to do the damage.
Remember “prevention is better than cure!”