Among the enemies of the garden snails are one of the most fearsome . Snails and slugs are widespread, appear as soon as a minimum of humidity allows them to come out into the open air, and under the right conditions they reproduce quickly.
The damage they cause is well known to market gardeners: their voracity has no brake and can completely destroy the salads Yes young plants who have just been transplanted.
It is therefore often necessary remedy and look for a system to eliminate snails. Among the defense methods authorized in organic farming is a very good bait for snails made of ferric phosphate . It can be found on the market offered by SOLABIOL, below we find out how it works and when it should be used.
Contents [Ocultar]
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Snail Damage and Natural Remedies
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Ferric phosphate: how it works
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When to use slugicide
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How and how much to use
Snail Damage and Natural Remedies
The damage caused by snails is obvious: we find the plants in the garden bitten, sometimes almost entirely devoured. These gastropods they affect virtually all cultures , feeding on the leaves. They are especially damaging to young plants, compromising them. Like many garden pests, snails are very quick to reproduce also relying on the fact that they are hermaphroditic creatures, so any individual can make eggs.
In many traditional orchards, the chemical snail killer It is used to contain snails, made from metaldehyde . As we have already discussed in depth about Orto Da Coltivare, it is a particularly toxic product which, in addition to contaminating and dirtying vegetables, can be dangerous for children and pets. Unfortunately, in many garden centers this poisonous remedy is still recommended, but it should be absolutely avoided.
Natural alternatives are not lacking, there are several possible methods even without any cost: for example one can do beer traps That is ash barriers . However, these systems require constant application and are not always able to cope with the threat of snails: the beer kills a limited number of individuals and the jars must be checked and changed often, because the ash has only ‘a little moisture sufficient to counteract the protection.’
Snail activity depends on humidity and temperature conditions . To limit its spread, it may be enough water in the morning instead of afternoon and implement the systems already mentioned (beer and ash). When the infestation is heavy, better protection is needed. An excellent solution authorized in organic farming are ferric phosphate granules. .
Ferric phosphate: how it works
ferric phosphate or ferric orthophosphate is the active ingredient of the SOLABIOL snail and is a salt of natural origin whose use in organic farming is authorized, and which is also used in the context of certified organic farms (according to EC Regulation 2092/91). Unlike metaldehyde, ferric phosphate it’s not toxic for wildlife and pets. You can order it from the best garden centers or buy it from Amazon.
The formulation is particularly appetizing and is therefore able to attract snails and snails who eat it greedily, therefore ingest the orthophosphate. The blue color is specially designed not to attract birds, which might otherwise peck at it.
The action on the snail is quick and clean: ferric phosphate inhibits gastropod nutrition , rendering him unappetizing and leading to his death. Unlike other snails, orthophosphate does not work through dehydration, so snails that walk away once they have fed on it leave no traces of slime.
Ferric phosphate which is not consumed by snails does not pollute because it degrades naturally on the ground . This degradation adds useful microelements to the soil for plants. Indeed, after certain transformations carried out by the micro-organisms present in the soil, the particles of iron and phosphorus they are always precious available for the root system of plants.
When to use the slug killer
Snails and slugs are scattered everywhere, they take advantage of the night hours to feed and generally appear as soon as a minimum of humidity allows them to go outside. In winter they are inactive, but when the temperatures rise we find them eating our lettuces.
Analysis of weather conditions we can easily guess the times more favorable to gastropods : especially the months of spring and first autumn, when the temperatures are mild and there is no shortage of rainfall. These are the periods during which SOLABIOL iron-based snail granules are most favorable because, thanks to their “wet” formulation, escaine granules are particularly waterproof .
Although it acts quite quickly, it is advisable to use the organic snail killer preventively reduce the snail population before it threatens our vegetables. Its bait role attracts snails that live in the surroundings and eliminates them. If we act in time, we can control the snail population, preventing them from proliferating uncontrollably.
Being a natural substance without toxicity for humans, Solabiol ferric phosphate has no downtime and it can also be used near vegetable harvest.
Mode and amount of use
Thanks to the great attractiveness of the bait and its rapid action, SOLABIOL biological snail killer It can be applied both preventively when the weather conditions are favorable to the development of gastropods, and in an emergency, that is to say when several active individuals are observed.
There are three application methods:
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a lot can be done here and there, which is useful for preventive purposes.
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can be distributed by broadcasting among seedlings in the garden or flower beds, this method is indicated if the snails are already in action.
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You can distribute the product on the whole perimeter forming a kind of spiral barrier, a recommended system to be safe.
The amount slug killer to use is variable, in the broadcast distribution some 3 or 4 grams per square meter while if we choose to make a perimeter strip we will need approximately 20/25 grams of product for defend an orchard 100 square meters . With good preventive use, we can use less, stacking them, but we must be constant.
The duration of the pellets is highly variable depending on the climate, SOLABIOL slug pellets, thanks to the “wet” formulation It is designed for excellent water resistance. To understand whether it needs to be renewed, just observe when the granules degrade.
One way to extend the life of the bait is to use Lima Trap devices, which protect the organic snail killer SOLABIOL from rain.