I am not sure methiocarb is available to non-commercial growers and if you have pets you will need to be sure they can't get to. All slug pellets are sprinkled on the surface and you them run the risk of killing birds that eat the slugs.

Copy and paste the link below into your web browser (not Google) for info on other ways of dealing with this problem.

http://bit.ly/sDnB6w

I believe that methiocarb is a Bayer product but is for commercial use, so it will only be supplied through a grower. If you are going to use it in the garden on your veg plot or on an allotment, you will have to use it twice every year to be effective. Even if you use a nematode treatment (which isn't cheap) you will find that eventually slugs will move back in from your neighbours, plots or gardens. I would be inclined to grow early potatoes in sacks, yes they need more attention but no slugs. This will also give your soil a rest for a couple of years and then you can try again.

Just as a thought you are practicing crop rotation Sarah so that you grow your potatoes on the same ground only once in four years, three at a push?

Although not specifically used for potatoes I've had great success using nematodes to reduce the volume of slugs in my garden.

I don't find the cost too bad compared to the amount of plantsI would lose if I hadn't used it.

The product suits me as it's natural and doesn't pose any risk to my cats. Now if only I could find a way to stop the cats digging in the flower beds....