Slugs
Slugs are molluscs and they love damp, heavy soil.
Don't be tempted to use slug pellets. They don't work and you'll poison the birds which eat them.
You need to avoid making a potato bed which attracts slugs.
Use plenty of compost and manure to make the soil lighter.
If you have a bad slug problem - on warm, wet summer days, go outside after the rain has stopped and physically remove slugs from the plot. You'll find them everywhere. Put them on a slab and tread on them. After a few times you'll find the numbers decline.
When your potatoes are ready, take them up reasonably promptly, before the remaining slugs find them.
As for 'biological control' methods - I've never met a gardener who's used them more than once. That speaks for itself.
compiled by Nigel Deacon / Diversity website
