The Key To Preventing Snails From Invading Your Garden

Gardening is a rewarding pastime for many, but what isn't so satisfying is the never-ending battle with pests who want to destroy your garden in sundry ways. One common pest is the snail. While there are benefits to having snails in your garden, they can also cause all sorts of problems. Snails like to munch on live and dead matter, so your freshly growing plants are susceptible to them, as is new growth on established plants. Your plants themselves aren't the only things in your garden these shelled pests enjoy munching on — they'll eat your fruits, from tomatoes to citrus, and anything in between. If you've noticed damage to your plants but haven't seen any actual slugs, they leave telltale signs. It could also be invasive snails invading your garden, which makes it even more critical to battle them.

Since a lot of what attracts snails to gardens is the food and water they'll find there, the best way to deal with snails invading your garden is to come up with a garden plan that makes your space less appetizing to them. The key is creating a garden that is resilient to snails with a few critical "ingredients." You may want to surround the outer parts of the garden with plants they don't like, keep the garden from having water sources, and make the area less appealing to them by providing plenty of sunshine. These are some simple humane ways to keep snails at bay.

There are plenty of tips out there for keeping snails out of your garden. Let's start with some plants that can help you keep them away. It's not just about the plants themselves; it's also about modifying your garden design with strategic plant placement. Most leaf-eating pests dislike the same plants, including slugs and snails. Some plants to use as borders for your gardens to help keep snails from coming in for dinner include herbs like fennel, sage, thyme, and rosemary, which deter snails with their scent and, in some cases, their texture. Lavender is a great-smelling plant that snails don't like, either. Tomato leaves are unappetizing to snails, as are mustard plants. You could also surround your garden with flowers that snails like to avoid, including peonies, begonias, and dahlias.

Snails are attracted to water, so you want to be sure that the watering methods you're using aren't attracting them. Since it's important to water your plants, you'll want to be strategic about controlling water by avoiding overwatering and by using drip irrigation systems. It's also important to water them early in the morning so the plants can absorb the water and dry out by nighttime when the snails will start creeping on. The right amount of sunlight hitting your garden throughout the day could be another great way to battle snail infestations, which also helps remove standing water.