Slugs are such a pain.... I have found that if I protect zinnias from slugs when they are young, they are left alone later. Ditto for marigolds. I think they particularly like young, soft, green growth. Once that hardens off, they move on to other things. Try sowing slug bait around your plants at planting time. Then, keep an eye on them. You might need to treat once more, but shouldn't need to after that. There is a mild bait that will not harm pets.

I really don't know of any plant that slugs won't eat. You'll need to develop, like we all do, a multi-step program to insure that you will be able to enjoy your plants.

The slug bait is important. The one that Donna is speaking of has iron phosphate as the active ingredient and is considered pretty safe around pets, kids, wildlife, edibles, etc. One brand name is 'Slug-go', but there are others, too, I think. Read the label...there are highly toxic slug baits on the market, as well, but there is NO need to go that route.

If these areas are small, you may want to consider making a little 'fence' of copper stripping around them. Copper does a fantastic job of repelling slugs. You can purchase copper strips, flashing, sheets, etc. at various locations. I've even had good results with copper window screen. The plant OR the planting bed needs to be surrounded by the copper. Cover the top or bottom rim of your containers with copper, too, and no more slugs.

Keep up with the beer traps, as well. You can place a folded, wet section of newspaper on the ground over night and collect the slugs in the morning to toss them.

rhizo_1 - i haven't heard of this newspaper idea. do they stick to it or something? or do they take cover under the fold?

Yes, I forgot about the copper. Pennies make an easy barrier....

They take cover under the newspaper. Just make sure that it's nice and wet. Donna, do pennies really work (anymore)? Is that thin coating of copper enough to do the job? I've not tried it.

You know, rhizo, that's a good question. It's been a few years since I last tried it. Look for old pennies....?

I recommend spending your pennies on Sluggo. Great stuff. :-)