¿Qué comen las babosas y los caracoles y cómo se trabaja con ellos en el jardín?

Muchos jardineros de permacultura luchan cada temporada contra hordas de babosas hambrientas, que devoran el fruto de días de trabajo. Se prueban todas las bolitas de babosa naturales, a menudo en vano, se recogen las damiselas, se mueven, se vuelven a colocar, … se vuelven a colocar…, el halo de su faro busca entre la maleza, las ojeras ahuecan su cara…

¿Y si un diseño de jardín basado en el conocimiento de lo que comen las babosas y cómo prevenirlas pudiera resolver el problema?

Eso es lo que intento destacar en este artículo.

Pero antes deir más lejosPara saber más, lea el artículo de la imagen inferior. Entonces vuelve a este.

I. ¿Qué come una babosa? ¿Qué plantas prefiere?

1. Evitar las plantas que gustan a las babosas: probablemente la mejor idea

En primer lugar, si tienes problemas recurrentes con las babosas, una de las ideas más sencillas y obvias que puedes poner en práctica esevitar en la medida de lo posible las plantas hortícolas que les gusta comer.

Porque si cultivas un huerto utilizando la permacultura, es probable que tu huerto esté repleto de una gran variedad de plantas naturales (la mayoría de las cuales se denominan injustamente “malas hierbas”). Si las plantas de tu huerto no son más atractivas para las babosas que las que crecen de forma natural en tu jardín, no hay motivo para que se concentren allí, como suele ocurrir.

2. Lista de plantas hortícolas que las babosas realmente les gusta comer :

Aquí tienes una lista de plantas hortícolas muy sensibles a las babosas y que debes evitar plantar si la primavera es sinónimo de explosión de la población de babosas:

• Albahaca
• Col
• Fresas (fruta)
• Frambuesas (fruta)
• Judías
• Lechuga de hoja (arrepollada y Boston)
• Maíz
• Soja
• Ensalada verde
• Plantas de pimiento
• Plantas jóvenes de calabaza
• Calabacines jóvenes
• Plantas jóvenes de pepino
• Judías
• Plantas jóvenes de apio
• Colirrábano
• Hojas de rábano
• Espárragos
• Espinacas

“¡Pero si están todos! …”, dirá usted. “¡No voy a comer patatas y tomates en todas las comidas! Sí, es cierto, y por eso propongo que busquemos soluciones a este problema de inmediato.

3. How to grow plants that are very sensitive to slugs?

1. How to protect seedlings and young plants from slugs?

Several plants in your garden are sensitive to slugs throughout their development (radishes, lettuce and cabbages, basil, etc.). But most plants are much more sensitive in their early stages of development (cucurbits, for example). A good solution for these plants is to protect young plants and plant them only when they are sufficiently vigorous : then they will be less attractive to slugs and snails, and will better resist the damage they may suffer when they eat them. Keeping these young plants indoors is a very good solution. In general, it is best not to sow directly into the ground.

2. Selection of the most slug-resistant plants

Another strategy you can implement is to trust Mr. Darwin, although it is a much longer term approach.

For each species, nature applies natural selection… so that only the individuals best adapted to their environment can procreate. The goal is to transmit your genes (and, therefore, your anatomical and/or behavioral characteristics) to your offspring. This gives species notable long-term resistance and adaptability to major changes in their environment. Plants are also subject to this natural selection.

If you plant 10 zucchini plants in your garden, the diversity of genetic inheritance means that no one will have exactly the same characteristics as its neighbor. Among these differences, probably not all plants will have the same appeal to slugs (their texture and/or “flavor” will be very slightly different).

Sometimes you may notice that one of your plants has been attacked less by slugs than the others .

What you can do is collect the seeds of this plant (its genetic heritage), to replant them next season . If it turns out that this zucchini plant was indeed less attacked because it was less attractive to slugs (and not by chance, since it is also possible), by continuing to do this, season after season, your plants will be more resistant to slugs .

3. Plant old varieties of plants, less likely to be eaten by slugs.

A simpler and quicker method to get started is to directly choose varieties of old plants. In recent decades, plants have been selected with the aim of preserving only those that produce more, larger and tastier fruits. Climatic and environmental risks (drought, explosion of slug populations, etc.) were contained thanks to technological “progress” (abundant irrigation, metaldehyde granules, etc.).

But then, when all these technologies did not yet exist, the plants we selected were the most naturally resistant , because they were the ones that survived.

Many old varieties have been preserved, and their greater natural resistance to slugs is a real advantage.

II. How to use the knowledge of what a slug eats: the technique of mass culling

1. The technique of mass sacrifice: why? And how can you use it to keep slugs away from your garden?

Sacrificial bedding, as the name suggests, involves dedicating a portion of your garden to slugs, to limit damage to your horticultural plants . If you see it as a gift for its usefulness in the garden, it is also a way to focus their “attention” on plants that are not important to you, but very attractive to them (it is the same principle as with surface composting).

Imagine that you are with some friends and that you are all absolute fans of pancakes. You are in a pedestrian plaza, and there is a pancake stand at one end of the plaza and a sugar candy stand at the other.

Most likely you’ll head to the pancake stand. And even if one of your friends ate some the day before and goes out to buy cotton candy, chances are most of you will enjoy these hot rolled pancakes.

In your garden, let’s imagine that the cotton candy stand is your garden. Place a pancake holder, which slugs prefer.

2. List of plants that slugs love to eat, to use in a sacrifice bed

These are the variants that you can offer to slugs and snails in your stall:

• Yellow mustards with lemon sugar
• cream sunflowers
• Strawberry jam hostas
• Dahlia banana-nutella
• Salted Butter Caramel Zinnia
• Garriga honey radish
• Pear and chocolate rapeseed
• Watercress with maple syrup
• Chantilly dandelion

III. Put in the garden what slugs prefer to eat

As well as creating a sacrificial bed in a secluded corner of the garden (to keep most slugs away), you can also add plants that slugs love to eat to your garden . Using the analogy from before, there will always be some slugs that come to your cotton candy stand (by chance or because they were nearby). They won’t be interested in your pancake stand at the other end of the garden (it’s too far away and they won’t spot it, or the (instinctive) cost/benefit of such a move is low).

Therefore, you should plant “sacrificial” plants (which often form the core of a slug’s diet) in your garden, among your most valuable plants.

To do this, go back to part II.b. to select them 😉

IV. Plants that slugs eat: the psychological approach to having

Finally, I wanted to highlight an aspect that seems important to me. When choosing plants to “sacrifice” , remember to be prepared for everything to be devoured.

It is easy to fall into the trap of creating a very elegant ornamental bed that you will fall in love with . And you won’t be willing to let the slugs and snails eat it… only to end up where you started.

If you fear falling into this trap, choose plants that look as unadorned as possible. Avoid sunflowers, dahlias, zinnias… and plant dandelions, rapeseed, mustard instead…

Conclusion

Choosing the most resistant to slugs
The most resistant horticultural plants to slugs
The choice of the varieties of horticultural plants most resistant to slugs and the layout of the garden are priorities to deal with the large seasonal increases in the number of slugs and snails .

I believe that knowledge of these gastropods, and in particular their feeding habits and preferences, is crucial for the effective application of these measures.

¡Aún mejor! Adopte malla antibabosas de cobre;

Esta es la barrera de cobre que diseñé después de mis numerosas pruebas de barrera contra babosas;

Le debo el éxito de mis coles, ensaladas, fresas y cucurbitáceas;

Haga clic en este botón para obtener más información:

Artículos relacionados

Red antibabosas de cobre en primavera

Plantas antibabosas

Plantas resistentes a las babosas

Bibliografía

• Para calificar este artículo: Reed, J. M., Paine, M. E., & Million, J. N. (2008). Slugs as Generalist Herbivores: Tests of Three Hypotheses on Plant Choices. Ecology, 89(11), 3138-3148.
• Fuente: https: //www.slughelp.com/plants-snails-and-slugs-like-to-eat-vegetables-herbs-flowers/ – un sitio excelente, que recomiendo.