. THE cool, damp climate :
of the North Shore isa;

mixed blessing. -*-

Te makes our gardens pro--
: ductive and green all year.
round but is the perfect habi-'
tat for two of the most trou-
blesome ¢
Slugs and snails can cause‘
more dariage to plants ina,

few days than almost any other

garden
Snail and their revolution
ay younger relatives slugs,

0 lost

their calcareous shells ©

along the evolutionary ath,
both belong to the

‘den pests we have. :

family.: The salt water. members oe

of the same family, such as:
clams, mussels; octopus; oys

ters, and squid are all consid: ve

ed to be delicacies. The golf-..

ball sized len snails are ©,
highly valued by the French

escargot. Maybe if we could”

ca eee ae

sidered suich'a pest
lara 5 and snails do Not

selves ‘along a near
il-The Sime can also

many xy predators find the slime -
has ‘a bad taste and swells |.

‘keep the slug’s me fon

dehydrating. Should you. "

_ the slime on your hands it is -

best to roll it off like dry glue
bal bef amempting to:

into their shells:and create a:
pd plug. providing the tem-
moderate, se

_into this cates

7 thesoll .
‘The eggs are clear and about 2.

AOE RE RITE LATOURETTE LS

: Stugs 1 must find a cool damp

hiding place in the organic
debris or soil before they

‘ dehydrate or freeze. They will
_ ~ generally go to the closest hid-
- ing, place when the sun comes -
up and this makes them easier,

to trap.

Creatures that have both ok
“: sex orguis are called hem] h- ne

rodites; slugs and snails
. When two:
slugs or snails fertilize cach

«Other they both lay clusters of :

(tected areas or in:
low the frost line.

: when trying to.

mm in diameter. Finding and
destroying these egy masses in
the fall will prevent many
probiems in the spring.

There are many varicties of
slugs and snails and most have
been im imported on plants or
visitors Europe.

Our best known 1 native slug
is Ariolimas columbianis or
banana slug. They can grow
up to 20 cm, crawl 10 to 12

ma night and consume 30 to -
~ 40 times their weight in vege-
tation each night. Fortunately, ©

they prefer a forest setting
and are not often found in
~ gardens.
Limas maximus or the

great slug from Europe is
not as big as the banana

slug but can move at twice

the speed or about 25 cm.
per minute. The word
slug comes from the old :.
Norse word “slugga” °
meaning slow..
Sly eat a variety of
ferent foods depend--
ing on the variety. Peg
Somie are carnivorous
‘. while others tend to
° prefer humus and
fungi. Most garden slugs and. :

flowers and fruit. Their *..:

Wednesday, May 10, 2000 - North Shore News ~ 19

_ | ___ livingroom
damaging trail of slugs and snails

problems,

Setting up natural hiding
places for the slugs and then
trapping them is the easiest
way to deal with them. Lay a

- board between the row of

plants and then turn it over
every other day to catch the
hiding slugs. Some gardeners .
prefer to drown them in jars of
stale beer or a bread yeast liq-
uid. Cabbage leaves left in ;
strategic places will also attract
them for an evening meal and
a place to hide.

Slug hunts (with a can of

. salt) are best carried out in the

green guide .

- snails will eat green vegetation, - §

mouths are at the base of their., a

heads and the radula or -
tongue like structure has hun-

". rasp-like teeth that scrape th

organic tissue away. ‘This...
allows them to cut into the

leaf surface at any point and

_ Not just on the edge like we

vils or most cut worms. This

characteristic is worth kiowing ©
‘diagmose what |

is causing leaf
Snails and slugs have
natural predators.’ Beetles,’

. frogs, snakes, voled and birds“

will all help to reduce the.
ulation: Domestic ducks are

. particularly good ‘az cleaning

up infestations of slugs but’
. they may generate some other

carly morning, late evening or |
just after a rain. “

‘Traditional slug bait con-
sists of rolled soaked in
metaldehyde. This is best.“
placed in a coffee can (with:
Plastic lid) that has holes .
punched in the sides at the - _
base. The can protects the poi-
son from the rain, pets and ..:
children. Safer’s has a new:
product out that consists of .
ferric phosphate granules and"
is lethal to mollusks but will -

-” not harm birds or pets. Any’ oe
~ unused bait degrades and_

becomes part of the soil.”

” LAWRENCE Wick: ‘and ‘Meiion ‘Symons: checked ‘o'

the plants available for. trade ‘and: sale st:the North
Vancouver Recreation Cormmisston’s Perenni

TODAY,

‘rom: Septem

Flower Arranging Club'meets on the second We esday of cac

; month. in the Cedar. Room of the :Delbrook

RICHMOND.

1400 United Bivd.'524-9287.

Centre. Th