How do you do it??? Give us your secret!

Ok Maid. Get two bulbs of garlic, and smoosh them with a rolling pin...take out your frustration on them. Put them in 2 pints of water, and simmer for one hour. Let the liquid cool, and strain into a container. Use one tablespoon of the liquid to one gallon of water. Use first thing in spring as the hostas are peeking through the ground. One use of this is supposed to be sufficient, but I use it maybe every two months. Use it on any plant that is suseptible (spelling?) to slug attack. Another good tip...if you are bothered by deer. Hang bars of soap from the plants that are attacked by deer. (Dont know which brands of soap are best.... try it and see)

Donnie

Donnie--I'm so *visual*! I'm picturing a "Lady Isobel Barnett", leaves held high
and a bar of "Garlic Spring" being lathered liberally under her petioles!

Help me out here--I need the *real* picture! LOL

janice

Oops! I should have waited a couple of minutes and you would have cleared my head *before*
I revealed my silly thoughts! :o)

janice

Let me help you spell susceptable to slug damage; HOSTA

I can only see one problem with this. I think It would make my dogs like my Hosta even more than they do now. Do you have dogs? They like to eat all my ornamental grass the way it is. Any thoughts??? I put alfalfa pellets in my planting holes for my roses this spring and the dogs wouldn't leave them alone for weeks! LOL

Yeah, spelling was never my strong point....sorry

Donnie

Yeah Maid, I have two Cavalier King Charles Spaniel pups, one 6 months and one 8 months. They took great delight in eating my daffodils and tulips! You cant win.. Dogs or slugs lol You choose Lol

I'll keep the dogs but I might try this on some little slug magnets. I'll see what the dogs do to a couple I have doubles of. I have been having some success with coffee grounds, but find you need to keep applying them--seems the magic wears off after awhile or else the slugs might have started liking a morning dose of caffeine like I do LOL
This seems like a great idea with the garlic. At least if the dogs chew on the plants they won't die, they'll just have Pizza-breath!

Just don't let the dogs get too much garlic as it can be toxic to them in larger quantities.

Interesting idea for the slugs though!

Here is a link that might be useful: Dogs and onion and garlic poisoning

I have read that the garlic wash only keeps the vampire slugs away.

Vampire slugs!!! Hahahaha ha -- you've been lurking in my garden, haven't you?

I don't know if this would work, but simmering garlic for an hour would make my house smell wonderful!!!

Donnie,

I'm not a cook, when you say "bulb", do you mean the whole garlic thing you buy at the store, or two pieces out of the bigger one. Sorry if I'm confusing the issue, I'm one that uses powered garlic (sorry, don't mean to offend any chefs out there).

I'm going to stop off on my way home from work to buy garlic...this sounds like a fun thing to try.

Thanks!

Donna

Donna,
Use two whole bulbs! The small parts that make up the bulb are known as 'cloves' (Least thats what we call them) Be prepared it smells quite a bit lol

Donnie

I'm not sure if the garlic will kill the slugs or just give 'em bad breath. Actually, I've heard that garlic and onions will repel a lot of insect pests. Sprinkling red hot pepper powder around your plants should deter the slugs also (unless they're Mexican slugs?). LOL, Don

Thanks Donnie, I bought the garlic last night, tonight I'll boil some garlic bulbs (my mother told me the smaller pieces are called cloves too).

Maybe I'll add in some onions and cayenne pepper (good idea Don). That might keep the critters away too.

Donna

I'll think another good addition to the potion would be some "eye of newt".

lol

LOL! Good one Teresa.

I heard somewhere that it will keep strangers with shovels from taking your hostas!

I'll need to get some now that my astute neighbor that busted the theives moved away.

Do you sprinkle the liquid around the base of the plant or all over the plant or what? Spray the plant?

Socks,
I just use the garlic wash all over the plants. Leaves, surrounding soil...everywhere lol. I believe that the wash will also repel greenfly etc.

Where can I get 'eye of newts' ? (I mean, without ambushing newts lol)

Donnie

Donna, I think you should throw in some potatoes and carrots and forget the slugs--they don't taste that good anyhow! :o)

janice

The link below is interesting.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://webferret.search.com/click?wf,+%2Bbottle+%2Bof+%2Bgarlic+%2Bliquid,,www.garlicbarrier.com%2Ffacts.html,,altavista