'I'm gardener - these plants keep slugs out of the garden all year with no effort'
It can be frustrating if slugs keep eating away at your flowers, but you can keep these pests away for good if you know the right plants to have in your garden.
Gardening expert details natural ways to deal with slugs
Slugs can cause lots of damage to gardens as they are known to eat any plants they come across, and can kill any prized flowers you may have if they eat away at the roots.
It can be frustrating dealing with slugs and snails at this time of year as they are more common during the cooler and wetter spring weather and more likely to reproduce.
However, Joanne Bray, a gardening expert and founder of Plantlife Joy, has shared that it is easy to keep these pests away without having to resort to harmful chemicals.
Slugs are highly sensitive and will avoid plants with extremely strong scents or have rougher textures which are uncomfortable to eat or crawl on.
Many gardeners begin planting in spring to prepare their gardens for the year ahead, and you can protect your garden from slugs if you also grow slug-repelling plants as well.
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What to plant in your garden
Joanne explained: “Slugs, to deter them without using slug pellets or pesticides you can plant strong-scented plants such as rosemary, lavender, [and] geraniums.
“They don’t like weird textured leaves so ferns, hydrangeas and they’re not keen on anthuriums either or alliums so anything from the onion family you can plant.”
Hydrangeas are popular amongst gardeners due to how easy they are to take care of and their big beautiful summer blooms.
Not only do slugs hate the texture of these plants but hydrangeas can also create a barrier in your garden and make it more difficult for these slugs to reach other plants.
Hardy geraniums have hairy stems and leaves which are uncomfortable for the slugs to crawl on. They are best planted on the border of the garden and also have a beautiful fragrance which deters slugs.
Slugs cannot eat the thick leaves on ferns and will likely move along if they discover these plants in the garden as they will find it difficult to find a food source.
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Other strongly scented plants such as onions, lavender and rosemary will not only deter slugs, but also likely to also repel aphids, spider mites, cabbage worms and Japanese beetles.
Having a variety of these plants in your garden is one of the best natural solutions for deterring pests, but Joanne also recommends attracting slugs to a certain area of your garden to make it easier for predators to spot them.
She said: “What I to do is put food out for [slugs] that they actually like so they all congregate in one area and then the birds can get them easier and then we’ve not used any pesticides and we’re not hurting anything.”
Using harsh chemicals to keep slugs away can not only damage the garden but also hurt wildlife such as birds which will get sick if they eat a slug which has eaten a poisonous slug pellet or is doused in pesticides.
Planting not only helps make slugs leave your prized flowers alone but is much better for the environment and much safer for anyone who has pets or children playing in their garden.
