Slugs and snails can do a lot of damage to gardens by eating plants and leaving a mess behind them. There are many ways to get rid of these slimy bugs, but baking soda is one that you probably already have in your kitchen. Explore how to use baking soda to repel snails and slugs to have a thriving garden.
Slugs are one of the most troublesome pests that plague gardens and farms. These slimy mollusks can decimate vegetable seedlings leaves flowers, and fruits overnight. For organic gardeners who want to avoid toxic slug baits, an intriguing option is using baking soda. But does baking soda actually kill slugs, or just deter them? Let’s dive into the science and evidence.
How Baking Soda Could Potentially Kill Slugs
Baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) is an alkaline substance with a pH of around 8 when dissolved in water. Here are a couple theorized ways this alkalinity could potentially harm or kill slugs
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Disrupts mucus production – Slugs use mucus to move and breathe Baking soda may interfere with mucus formation
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Causes salt toxicity – At high concentrations, the sodium in baking soda can have a desiccating effect, like salt. This may dehydrate slugs.
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Reacts to form carbonic acid inside the slug – When baking soda enters a slug’s system, it mixes with water there to form carbonic acid, altering pH.
So in theory, baking soda can disrupt a slug’s physiology through pH changes, electrolyte imbalances, and interference with essential mucus. But what does real-world evidence show?
Evidence That Baking Soda Kills Slugs
While there are no scientific studies proving baking soda’s efficacy for controlling slugs, there are two compelling lines of anecdotal evidence:
1. Many gardeners report success using baking soda against slugs.
Across gardening forums and websites, there are numerous accounts of people sprinkling baking soda around plants or creating perimeter barriers with it to effectively deter and kill slugs. Many report finding shriveled slug corpses after applying baking soda.
2. Baking soda solutions rapidly kill slugs when submerged.
When gardeners create dilute baking soda solutions in water and submerge slugs in them, the slugs quickly die. The video below demonstrates this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fiHFNXjLwg
Of course, anecdotal evidence has limitations. But the sheer volume of gardeners reporting success, and the rapid mortality seen when slugs are directly exposed to baking soda, suggest it can effectively kill slugs through the mechanisms theorized above.
Using Baking Soda to Control Slugs in Your Garden
If you want to leverage baking soda’s apparent molluscicidal effects, here are some ways to use it for controlling slugs:
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Light dusting around plants: Spread a thin layer of baking soda around seedlings, vegetables, or flower beds to protect them. Reapply after rain.
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Concentrated barriers: Heap baking soda 3-4 inches high and 1-2 inches wide around garden beds to block slug migration.
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Potted plant drench: Dissolve 1-2 tablespoons of baking soda per gallon of water and apply as a soil drench for container plants susceptible to slugs.
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Slug bait traps: Place small piles of baking soda on upside down flower pots, boards, etc to attract and kill slugs which ingest it.
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Direct contact: Sprinkle baking soda directly on slugs in the garden for quick elimination.
When applying around plants, use the minimum effective amount needed, as heavy concentrations can make soil more alkaline. Target slug hotspots and migration routes. If slugs still get through, increase the quantity or frequency of applications.
Deterring Slugs Without Killing Them
Some gardeners prefer to deter slugs without outright killing them. For a more animal-friendly approach, try these tactics instead of baking soda:
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Create safe spaces in your garden for slug predators like birds, frogs, snakes and beetles that will eat slugs.
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Trap slugs in small containers buried at soil level, then release them far away from your garden.
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Use barriers like copper tape that slugs avoid crossing. Diatomaceous earth can act as a similar sharp barrier.
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Remove moist debris where slugs like to hide and deploy traps like wooden boards to collect them for removal.
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Apply used coffee grounds, which may repel slugs based on anecdotal reports.
An Effective Slug-Busting Tool for Organic Gardens
When compared to harsh synthetic pesticides, baking soda offers a relatively gentle way to to battle slug infestations. While not scientifically proven, experienced gardeners widely report success using baking soda to deter and kill slugs. When combined with other organic methods, baking soda can be a safe, sustainable weapon to defend your plants against these voracious pests. Give it a try this gardening season!
Create a Protective Barrier
Snails and slugs will be scared away by a thin line of baking soda sprinkled around the edges of your garden beds or plants. The baking soda irritates their soft bodies, discouraging them from crossing the barrier. Reapply the baking soda after rain or watering to maintain its effectiveness.
Hostas, cabbage, and lilies are some plants that are more likely to get slugs and snails, and baking soda may help keep them away.
If you spot snails or slugs in your garden, you can directly apply baking soda to repel them. Sprinkle a light dusting of baking soda on the pests or directly on their feeding areas.
Baking soda works similarly to salt as a deterrent when applied to snails or slugs. Sodium bicarbonate, which is in baking soda, and sodium chloride, which is in salt, can both dry out pests’ bodies and make them lose water.
There is a slimy mucus layer on the bodies of snails and slugs that helps them stay moist and avoid drying out. They do, however, lose water when baking soda or salt touches their bodies because these substances are dry and absorbent. Because of this, the protective mucus layer gets damaged, which causes the pests to lose too much water and become dehydrated.
The dehydrating effect of baking soda or salt on snails and slugs is due to osmosis. Osmosis is the movement of water across a semipermeable membrane from a place with fewer solutes (like snail or slug body fluids) to a place with more solutes (like baking soda or salt). When this happens, the high solute concentration of baking soda pulls water out of the pests’ bodies, making it hard for them to stay alive.
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Even though baking soda is generally safe for plants, there are some things you should do to keep snails and slugs away.
1. Test in a small area first: It’s important to do a patch test on a small area or a few plants before putting baking soda on your whole garden. It will help you make sure that the baking soda doesn’t hurt your plants or make them react badly.
2. Avoid excessive application: While baking soda can effectively repel snails and slugs, its essential to use it sparingly. Excessive amounts of baking soda may harm your plants, altering soil pH or causing leaf burns or discoloration.
3. Combine with other effective pest control methods: Instead of relying on baking soda alone, think about using it with other effective methods. For example, you can hand-pick the plants, put up physical barriers with copper tape, bring in natural predators like ducks or frogs, and keep the garden in good shape. These strategies, when combined, can enhance the overall effectiveness of pest control in your garden.
4. As you garden, use companion plants and techniques. For example, lavender, rosemary, and sage are naturally repellent to snails and slugs. By incorporating these plants as companions in your garden, you can help deter these pests. Drip irrigation and watering near sunrise can also lower humidity and keep surfaces moist, making it less appealing for snails and slugs to live there.
5. You could use vinegar as a deterrent. Vinegar is a natural and more humane way to get rid of snails and slugs. You can put vinegar around your plants or near places they might hide, like rocks, trash, or irrigation boxes. The pungent smell of vinegar is a deterrent, keeping these pests away from your plants.
Remember to balance pest control and the overall well-being of your plants and the ecosystem.
Using Baking Soda To Repel Snails and Slugs
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You can use baking soda to repel or kill slugs and snails!
How To Use Baking Soda to Kill Pests – COCKROACHES, BEDBUGS, ANTS, MICE, Etc
Does baking soda kill slugs?
Baking soda is a harmless ingredient for humans, often used to make delicious chewy cookies. But when used against slugs, it’s dangerous! There aren’t any set-in-stone studies or research about how or why it kills slugs, but many gardeners are on the same page about baking soda being an effective way to get rid of them.
How effective is a bee sting salve made of baking soda and water?
Washing the bee sting site with baking soda water can reduce swelling and pain in the affected area because it neutralizes the poisonous components. However, the first priority is to wash the sting site thoroughly with running water and soap to remove the poisonous components and prevent bacteria from entering the sting site.
How do you get rid of slugs?
If you can’t catch them by hand, you can use an ingredient you probably have in your pantry: baking soda. Getting rid of slugs can be unpleasant if you find them to be icky, so you may appreciate this hands-off approach! Prevention is the best way to eliminate them, and baking soda will do just that.
Does baking soda kill snails?
Baking soda is an effective pest repellant because it causes these shelled creatures to become dehydrated because of its alkaline content. To use baking soda for snail or slug control, wait until night when they are most active, and then grab a flashlight.