The Great Slug War of 2026

It rained for nine days straight at the end of April, and the slugs had a party. Forty lettuce seedlings went in, and by the next weekend eleven were left.

What I tried

• Beer traps: effective, slightly disgusting. Emptied each morning.
• Copper tape around the raised beds: works as long as nothing bridges over it.
• Night patrols with a torch and a bucket: 214 slugs in one evening. My record.
• Encouraging predators: the new wildlife pond already has frogs, and a hedgehog has been seen near the compost.

I do not use slug pellets. They harm the very birds, frogs and hedgehogs that eat slugs for free.

Next plan: raise lettuce seedlings to a bigger size in modules before planting out. Big plants shrug off a few nibbles.