This month has been exceptional for slugs and snails. With the milder winter and now the very wet spring, the slug population has gone through the roof. Every gardener’s nightmare has been realised, the slugs are eating faster than plants can be planted.
The weather conditions and the ample supply of fresh young plants in the garden mean the population has soared. Under every pot and container are well fed little creatures. A gardener could go mad. Instead, it is better to remove what plant material can be moved back into the house or out of reach of the slugs.
People growing on balconies and roofs are protected from this invasion. It is much easier to protect plants on solid surfaces away from the soil. This invasion is noticeably increasing each year with the disruptions of normal winter/spring weather cycles.
In olden days gardeners would thoroughly wash pots and containers with a strong disinfectant solution before planting. This would at least allow the small plants to get started before the solution was washed away. Unfortunately, with present rainfall this would require washing day and night.
Basically, the gardener swamped with slugs and snails has no other option but to grin and bare it. The wet weather is good for getting plants started so the ones that survive will do well. Other than that, it may be time to consider roof top gardening for next year.