Scientific Name

Ditylenchus, Aphelencloides species

Common Name

Slugs & Snails

Phylum, Class

Mollusca, Gastropod

Physical Description

Soft bodied unsegmented gastropod mollusks, moving on one foot. Snails have hard shells, into which the body retreats.

Habitat, Distribution

Soil, under stones, in detritus, under pots in day, feeding at night. Found in fields, hedges, woods, gardens. Common in calcareous soils. Most soils with organic content will support large numbers. Widely distributed in Europe.

Life Cycle

Individual slugs and snails are hermaphrodite, sometimes crossmating, where the courtship is elaborate. 10-50 spherical opaque or transparent eggs are laid in cavities or the soil. Each may lay 500 eggs in a lifetime. Eggs hatch a month later. If laid in spring will develop in year. If laid in Autumn, will lie dormant through winter. Young slugs are miniature versions of the adult, and feed for a year before being able to reproduce.

Method Of Attack

Rasping tongue (radula) chops materials. Feeds at night.

Symptoms & Damage Caused

New irregular holes in roots, bulbs, corms, tubers, stems, leaves, flowers and buds, fruits, in the morning. Slime trail over floors and plants. Mainly in warm periods of spring and autumn. In greenhouses this occurs all year round. Most damage above ground. Also may feed on dead matter, decaying leaves.

Plants Affected

All plants. Especially Potatoes, Sweet pea, Iris, Artichoke, Brassica, Anenomes, Dahlias, Delphinium, Helenium, Hosta, Hyacinth, Lilium, Narcissus, Primula, Tulipa, Viola.

Cultural Control

Cultivate soil frequently to expose eggs. Limit the amount of manure used in compost and mulch. Maintain hygiene. Trap by laying lettuce, cabbage, bran, beer and other organic materials in a small pit or bowl in the ground in warm humid evenings.

Cultural Control

Poisons: Metalehyde, Methiocarb slug pellets. Effective for 3 days.1kg = 1ha. Spread pellets, ash, soot around seed and cutting trays.

Stage Vulnerable

Eggs in soil. Adults hibernating feeding resting.