To be honest, Mark - it doesn't really work. Many people have tried many different things, including coffee grounds, cocoa shells, you name it. People put out grapefruit skins and collect the critters in the morning, and beer traps, as well. All these give a measure of protection, but in the end, they find that either copper rings for really precious plants, or slug pellets for non-organic gardeners work best.

And there are now organic slug pellets available that use ferric phosphate to get rid of "the slimey ones".

I cannot bring my self to use slug pellets as I have frogs, hedgehogs and a cat who could all be harmed too.

I stopped using the ones based on metaldehyde a long time ago, after I accidentally poisoned a thrush, but the makers of the new ones claim that the pellets and the slugs that have eaten them are harmless to wildlife.

see - http://www.organiccatalog.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=1821

"The slug pellets we've all been waiting for. Safe for children and pets, birds, hedgehogs and other wildlife - killing only slugs and snails.
After remaining effective for several weeks in both wet and dry conditions, the pellets based on ferric phosphate will break down to iron and phosphate nutrients as part of garden soil."

These are the ones that I use, Beattie, as they are recommended by Garden Organic. Just wish that they weren't coloured the same blue as the metaldehyde ones.

Oh thanks for that update Beattie and BB. Do you know if the slugs die a kinder way too?

thank you all , its so nice to get help when you need it , thanks again mark :)

Not sure, Drc, it is one of thoose products where the target goes away and dies unseen.

my wife just rang to see if i had any answers, i said yes, bless her she went to b&q, and bought, safe for child,pets and wildlife, what a dimond she is, :)

Thanks BB

Bulbaholic, I'm sure the organic pellets are a paler blue than the metaldehye ones. I don't have any of the unsafe ones to compare them side by side, but I was surprised when I first started using them.

I've been weeding this morning, being kept company by a very bold robin and a tiny brown toad. Where he came from I have no idea - we live on top of a hill and I don't know of any ponds nearby.

I'm not in marketing, Beattie, but I am sure that someone missed a trick in not colouring them green.

I'm sure you're right! :-)

I'm at a bit of a loss to explain this, but we have a collection of Hostas which we are adding to every year because we have never suffered any damage from slugs or snails. They are situated in our little bit of woodland which has a goodly covering of leaf litter and we have concentrated on making our garden a haven for birds by erecting many bird boxes, a big variety of food scattered all over and sitiuated in different feeders at different levels together with a large bird bath which is constantly in use. Many of the birds, notably thrushes and blackbirds are constantly foraging in the leaf litter and we see evidence of their activity in the broken snail shells in pebble groups around the woodland. Whatever is happening, we thank our lucky stars, because in our previous garden the Hostas didn't stand a chance!

I have found exactly the same Bernard mine is planted in woodland area when it was young it was eaten but since its matured its left alone.

Hostas = snail fodder!
But, yes, agree that a good bird population is a great way to keep down snails. We have lots of birds in the garden but not many opf them are thrushes and the blackbirds seem to be scarce at the moment.

i dont use anything, not had a problem , think even before i had my pond i had frogs and toads, also hedgehogs so they all eat the slugs and snails,
a few member use copper tape round pots which i hear actually works