This page will help you get rid of slugs and snails from your garden and landscape. Slugs and snails are terrestrial (land) mollusks, related to clams and shellfish. The difference between the two is snails have an external shell while slugs do not (see pictures below). Both are garden pests in wet climates where they eat plants, especially tender leaves.

In the US slug and snails are most important on the west coast and in southern states. Plant damage is usually ragged and irregular, leaves appear shredded. Often distinctive "slime trails" can be found that mark where the critters crawled the night before as well.

Outside the garden, slugs and snails actually do beneficial things. They recycle organic matter helping to build soils and they are important prey for other wildlife. Inside the garden and landscape, however, slugs and snails can do considerable damage and often must be controlled.

The lives of slugs and snails

Depending on species, slugs and snails need one or two years to complete a generation. Some species lay eggs in spring, some lay eggs in fall, some at both times. Immature slugs and snails occur in the spring and fall when temperatures are relatively high and the ground is wet.

Spring and fall are also the best times to control both slugs and snails. Feeding generally occurs at night. In the morning slime trails can often be seen where slugs and snails were the night before. Currently the best control for garden slugs and snails are the low toxicity, iron phosphate-based slug baits (use these links for more information).

Because slugs and snails need relatively wet conditions, they are experts at finding hiding places. They hide under all sorts of debris and even seek shelter in cracks in the soil during dry periods. Rock piles are especially good breeding areas but also support populations of natural slug and snail predators like garter snakes.