The garden is looking like a war zone at the moment. It has come under attack from the weather and garden pests.
How can something no bigger than your thumb, and frequently only the size of your nail, cause so much destruction? Easy, they have avaricious appetites, come out to play when it’s wet and strip anything in sight with gay abandon. SNAILS!
I run a regular snail watch but within 24 hours my garden has been over run by these wretched gastropods.
In the front garden, they have done this to the sunflowers.
And this to the pansies.
In the back garden, one of the poppies is now a stick and I removed at least half a dozen snails from the others this morning. Yes you can see slug pellets in the background, I have put some down in sheer desperation. I use organic pellets, but they are only showerproof not deluge proof so clearly are not doing their job.
Despite, gravel scattered around the base of the Dahlia they have absailed their way on to the leaves.
The Centaurea doesn’t look as though it stands a chance at the moment:-
As for the broad beans, I may not be sure if I am going to like home grown broad beans, (it’s the first time I have grown them, following a childhood abhorrence) the snails sure do:-
Needless to say the hostas have fallen victim big time this year. I have half a mind to pull them up and replace them with slug resistant varieties and see if they ward off snails also.
Other pests in the garden, brought out by the damp weather are WOODLICE. Some of you may have seen my Wordless Wednesday photo showing how my strawberries are being eaten by woodlice. This is another photo, taken this morning, the whole plant is infested and I don’t know how to get rid of them, any suggestions are welcome:-
The third element to the garden destruction at the moment is the weather. We are still being hit with wind and rain, with sunny days being very few and far between. Are we ever going to have any Summer in 2012?
The poor roses are really suffering and some of my bushes have given up the ghost and refusing to flower at all.
Maybe we will have some Summer weather soon, everything will dry out and flourish again, and the snails and slugs will disappear. In the meantime I saw this the other day which made me smile, and you have got to smile, haven’t you?
From Jokedeo.com
© Hurtlingtowards60 and Hurtled to 60 and Now Beyond. ©AarTeePhotography Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author is strictly prohibited
Hi Ronnie,
I feel your pain – the slugs and snails have suddenly boomed in numbers and it’s a massacre out there! Until now I’d been amazed few things have suffered but I think it’s the past two weeks of near constant rain that’s caused it. Previously we regularly had a few dry days between the rain but since my week off it’s rained pretty much every.single.day.
Needless to say, I too have cracked out the organic slug pellets (normally only need them in spring) and been picking the molluscs off in their drones.
I’ve spent this morning moving a geranium (expecting rain to water it in, later) and cut almost all my rose blooms off the bushes for vases because I’d sooner see them indoors than rotting outside in the rain.
Also beginning to feel the depression setting in after all this constant wet.
Oh yes, and woodlice by the million here too. They’re loving this humid damp weather.
I find it so disheartening to raise plants from seed with love and care only to find on the verge of flowering they are reduced to nothing. This weather has a lot to answer for. I have picked a lot do roses but the majority of damage seems to have taken place within the last 48 hours. At least I know I am not alone. 😊
Hi Ronnie,
Yup, I can understand that sentiment – in my case most of my seedling this year never even made it to the blooming stage thanks to the weather
heehee. But yes, anything being eaten by them is most annoying! I’ve just found what can only be described as a snail party in one border… Had to get rid of them all, obviously. I guess my rattie that kept their numbers down has either died, been caught by the cats or moved on.
Oh and guess what I discovered earlier??! My Agapanthus has a stem/bloom on it! Just as I’d commented on your last post how I’ve never yet seen it flower and I’ve had it well over 5 years. Woo hoo
Thumbs up for your Agapanthus
I’m not sure the gravel around plants is an effective barrier, we were amazed to see snails navigating their way up our pebble-dashed house and next-door’s garage wall. I was also feeling guilty not doing much gardening this year due to my frozen-shoulder but I think I may just give veggie growing a miss this year and hope for a better year next year.
They certainly seem undeterred by anything at the moment don’t they. Gravel used to work but the critters have toughened up.
How discouraging for you. I didn’t even plant a vegetable garden this year because the deer just eat it up. A few spinach and lettuce plants came up on their own, but I see that something has eaten all the lettuce.
Deer! Goodness me and there am I complaining about small creatures.
What a shame, after all that hard work! I wish we could get just a little of that rain you are having right now. After 4 days of 100F and above temps and no rain for what seems like weeks, everything in the garden here has wilted or dried up altogether.
You can have all our rain, not just a little, happy to do a swap although I think 100F is a might too hot.
Yes, too hot to go outside and pull the weeds that seem to be the only things flourishing at the moment. Seems strange to think of 80F as cooler but I can’t wait for it to get down to that! How I miss the temperate English climate even with all the rain!
Oh no its getting silly now isn’t it? Do I spot your cleomes hanging in there? I got home earlier and there was a six inch long blond slug on the front path!
yes the cleome are still hanging on, only getting a little yellow at the bottom, so fingers crossed. I hope you sent the slug to a speedy end!
Ronnie I don’t know what to say…your images actually brought me such sadness and even nausea…I cannot imagine how you are feeling although when the deer come through they can easily mow down many of my plants that will not recover as they have this year. While we whine with the heat and drought I know that too much rain can also cause destruction as I have had that but not like your snails. Ours are not nearly as large and as destructive. I hope that the warmth and sun can be found in your garden soon and that plants recover enough to give you some blooms….
Oh Donna I am sorry if they made you feel,I’ll, although that is how I felt this morning when I saw one of the poppies had been demolished . We really do need some summer soon, this rain can’t go on for ever…or can it? Maybe we all prayed too hard earlier this year when faced with a drought – who would have thought then that we would have the wettest June on record.
Oh, Ronnie, your poor roses! I dread walking outside at the moment: so different from the usual pleasurable early morning wander to see what has developed overnight.
Let us hope the Gulf Stream hauls itself out of our way….
I share your despair … I have a very beautiful walled garden that has taken a bashing from the weather, slugs and snails. I was able to get out today for while. So it looks a bit tidier and I was able to remove some of the little darlings (yuck) but unless we have some sun it is a loosing battle.
I find it a little heartening to realise that many gardeners in the UK seem to be suffering similarly (even people who use chemical warfare) but it can be so demoralising like you say when you have spent weeks if not months nurturing seedlings just for them to become lunch for the slimys ! Hope yours get their just desserts soon !
It’s hard to click Like on a post where you’re showing why you’re dismayed…but you did a great job of expressing this in you post.
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