With the warm weather and rain, slugs emerge from their sandy hiding places to enjoy the warm summer months. It’s time for some homemade slug traps! The best way to deal with slugs is by catching them and killing them.
Slug Traps are not only a great way to natural, non-toxic slug traps. But also a safe and effective way to trap slugs and snails. They are inexpensive, easy to make, safe, and don’t harm animals or people, allowing you to use them on any outdoor plant or food.
This is a very effective method that will require no stinking chemicals, so if you want to keep your house free of nasty slugs and snails, you need to put up slug bait.
A beer, baking soda, and garlic slug trap are some of the perfect solutions that have proven effective at getting rid of slugs.
Just a few ingredients, and you’re ready to go. Below, we’ll look at how to make your homemade slug traps that have been proven to perform well without breaking the bank.
Homemade Slug traps
You can use various traps to reduce the population of these pesky pests in your garden. Beer traps are the most popular trap out there, but there are also other traps that have proven effective using an everyday substance. You can eliminate slugs from your garden or trap them using the methods below.
Beer traps
Beer traps are easy to get rid of slugs since they act as both attractant and killer. They’re easy to make, and they’re not messy at all. All you need is some beer and a few supplies.
You can make beer traps with any beer, but if you want to get elaborate, we recommend using black beer. This beer has a strong flavor that will make your traps even more effective.
- Find a plastic bottle with a cap that fits the top of your beer bottle.
- Cut the bottle’s cap off, leaving just enough to fit over the bottom of the bottle, and then glue it in place with super glue or tape.
- Fill the cap with beer, and put a small tape over the opening so no liquid can get through when you seal it up again.
- Place your homemade slug trap in an area where you know there are slugs or snails, like under a mulch pile or in your garden bed.
Alternatively, Use a cup or a bowl and fill it with beer. Make the cup or bowl level with the ground by digging into the ground. This way, you want to get the slugs drawn when they enter the beer pool. You can buy the below trap from Amazon.
Coffee grounds
Try coffee grounds if you’re looking for a more eco-friendly and effective way to catch slugs.
Coffee grounds are a natural trap that can be used in gardens and on patios, so they’re also an environmentally-friendly option for those who want to avoid using pesticides.
The coffee grounds come from the leftover coffee from your morning cup of joe, which means you don’t have to buy any special traps; make sure you get coffee that hasn’t been treated with pesticides or other harmful chemicals.
You’ll need the following:
- One empty container/jar (a plastic one works best)
- Coffee grounds (enough for 2 to 3 cups of liquid)
- Water
Place the container in a shady spot, or set it up next to your garden or under a tree branch where slugs like to hide. Pour some water into the container until it’s about halfway full, then add some coffee grounds and stir well, so they’re evenly distributed throughout the water.
Place the lid on top of the container and let it stand overnight before refilling it with more liquid if necessary. The slugs will soon find this new habitat irresistible and drown the same way with the beer. Although, it has been said that coffee grounds are ineffective when you have too many slugs.
Slug bait pellets
Slug bait pellets are a type of slug bait designed to attract and kill slugs. It’s the perfect way to keep slugs at bay. Slug bait pellets attract slugs with a powerful scent, which is transferred to the slug when it bites into the pellet.
When slugs eat these pellets, they release this scent and become more attracted to it and less attracted to your plants. They are available in a variety of sizes, shapes, and flavors. Slug bait pellets can be found at most pet stores and gardening stores.
The pellets contain an attractant that will attract slugs to the area where they are placed. Once the slug finds the pellet, it will eat it and die from internal damage. This makes it easier for you to remove the slug from your garden without damaging it further.
Grapefruit Peels
The next time you see a slug on your lawn, don’t waste your time getting rid of it. Instead, use a grapefruit peel as a trap. Slugs are attracted to citrus peels’ smell and can’t resist crawling right inside.
They’ll get stuck and suffocate in the process. To make a grapefruit peel trap, cut off the top half of one grapefruit and place it on the ground. You can easily dispose of any slugs in the cover.
Natural slug-repellent Plants
There are several natural methods for repelling slugs. The most popular is to scatter salt around your plants and shrubs. The salt irritates the slug and makes it uncomfortable, discouraging it from returning to the area.
Another method is to use diatomaceous earth as bait. Slugs will eat this substance and die, preventing them from reproducing and spreading in your garden.
You can also try using garlic or onion slices as deterrents to slugs. Slugs don’t like the smell of these vegetables and will avoid coming near them.
Another good slug repellent is cayenne pepper which will kill slugs that try to eat your plants; it is safe for humans and pets. Slug repellents like this one have been used for centuries by people worldwide because they work so well.
Additionally, natural homemade slug repellent is easy to make. Just mix some vinegar, water, and salt in a jar. The salt will help draw the moisture out of the soil and from the roots of plants.
The vinegar will burn off any slime the slugs leave behind when they leave a trail back to their hole in the ground. The mixture will also act as an antifungal agent that keeps garden pests away from your crops.
Here’s a list of other natural slug-repellent plants:
- Sage
- Lavender
- Rosemary
- Cinnamon
- Clove oil (diluted with water)
- Baking soda and water
- Fennel
- CatnipPeppermint Oil
In addition to repelling slugs, slug repellent can also deter snails and other pests that like to eat off-season vegetables. It can be used for indoor and outdoor plants, so you don’t have to choose between protecting your plants and staying organic.
Tins with rough edges
Slug traps are a great way to catch slugs and snails without using harmful chemicals. The easiest way to set up homemade slug traps is with tins with rough edges.
You can use a nail or screwdriver to poke holes in the tin and make it as sharp as possible. Then you can place your bait inside the tin, add water, and place it near where you see slugs or snails.
Slug trap and repellent without beer
There are other ways to repel and get rid of slugs from your garden aside from using beer traps. We analyze the natural ways to stop slugs from eating plants and how to keep your garden clean and free of these pesky pests.
Slug trap yeast
How to make Slug trap yeast
1) Mix one part of the slug trap yeast with two parts water in a spray bottle.
2) Spray this mixture on your plants every day until it stops working (usually about two weeks).
3) Repeat steps 1 and 2 every three days until the slugs are gone from your garden area.
Vinegar slug control
Vinegar is a natural acid, which makes it an effective killer of slugs. It’s also cheap, easy to use, and safe around people and pets, so if you’re looking for a way to eliminate slugs without using toxic chemicals, this is the solution.
To make the trap, fill the bottom half of each bottle with a mixture of one part vinegar and one part water. Then add anything that attracts slugs to the bottle, ripe fruits, vegetables, and other organic matter.
You want to ensure that everything in the bottle is dampened thoroughly so that it won’t dry out before you set them out.
Diatomaceous earth
Diatomaceous earth (DE) is a substance that kills slugs by eating away at the bodies of slugs and killing them. DE is also safe for use around kids and pets, so you can feel good about using it in your garden even if your kids or pets happen to wander past the garden while you’re setting up the trap.
You can easily make a DIY DE slug trap by mixing 1 part DE powder with two parts water in a shallow bowl like this one:
Diatomaceous earth is easy to use and is available at most grocery stores. You can get diatomaceous earth in an oyster shell or powder form.
Spread diatomaceous earth around your garden or yard by hand, sprinkling it on top of the soil and then covering it with another layer of soil. You can also use these traps inside your house to control pests without using harsh chemicals or poisons.
The next time you see slugs or snails around your home (or garden), pick up one of these homemade slug traps and watch it catch them.