Slug Watch!

Thursday, August 4, 2011
Andy and I went out for a paddle late yesterday morning and as we neared the cabin on our return, Andy said from his seat in the stern, "Remember the show Baywatch?"

Where the heck did that come from?

I can only surmise that our warm, sunny weather put him in the mind of Cali.We were also about to turn into our bay. Maybe simple brain word play with "bay"?

Regardless of how it popped up into conversation, the show in which Pamela Anderson got her start (and end?), doesn't get discussed too much in these parts. But last night we tried out a pilot of a new, exciting reality program I'm sure we can spin to the networks as kind of a Northwoods version of Baywatch . . . .SLUG Watch!  

Yesterday, Andy picked the first cabbage. For the last month or so, we've both been noticing a growing number of holes on the cabbage's outer leaves. The holes seemed to appear pretty rapidly over the course of a couple days and then slow down or stop appearing all together for a little bit. With none of the tell-tale moths that come with cabbage worms, I put the holes on the cabbage into the "I'll think about it tomorrow" category.  I probably should have done a little more inspecting because yesterday it became very apparent what the problem was: slugs.

Now, I think slugs and snails are kind of cute. And by cute I mean, a nice little motif for a notecard. Watching their little rear ends disappear into a head of cabbage is not cute. It's disgusting. 

Since the slugs feed at night, last night, after an evening of berry-picking, Andy and I headed out back with our flashlight to catch the little cabbage eating blobs in the act. We pulled them off and dropped them into a cup of soapy water, then sprinkled liberal amounts of "Sluggo", a slug bait around the base of the cabbages. 


By the time I'd rid the remaining eight cabbages of approximately 20 small slugs, my fingers covered with a thick layer of goopy mucus that should only be allowed to exist in places like the nostrils of that troll from Harry Potter. It took more hand soap then I'd like to admit to remove the goop. I hope they take the bait, because I don't really fancy going out and plucking them off the cabbages again tonight.

But if I sense my cabbages are in distress tonight, you'll know what it'll look like: me running in slow motion towards the raised bed: my flannel shirt flapping behind me, a flashlight, a cup of soapy water, and a can of Sluggo under my arm. It may not be sexy, this Slug Watch, but someone's got to do it. 

12 comments:

  1. Love this post!!!Im sitting in my office laughing like a crazy person at the slow motion image of you running off to rescue your cabbage. The cabbage is lucky to have you. :)

    Katy

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  2. Oh no- I hope some of the cabbages can be saved! Back off slugs... SLUGWATCH is on!!

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  3. I am not in for cabbage currently! We used several flat bowl of beer or honey water rather away from the desired food trying to redirect... it worked well. Just as an idea!

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  4. I feel the need to wash my hands after reading this. Eeewwww!

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  5. Hey thank you for join the Fun Friday Blog Hop. Came to follow you and notice I already do :)

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  6. Following from the Friday Fun blog hop! Its been too dry for slugs here in Texas this year, but forever ago, when it used to rain, we would go catch them and salt slugs! Shhh! Don't tell the animal cruelty people...but it was fun!

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  7. Hi Ada. :-) I am inviting you to join my weekly blog hop and search for Blog Of The Week (Week 5). For more details, kindly visit this link:
    http://softvoiceofafreespirit.blogspot.com/2011/08/blog-of-week-week-4.html

    Hope to see you there! :-)

    Irene

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  8. Hi Ada, I followed a link from sweetwater style and I laughed so hard at the idea of slug watch!Thank you for the image of you running in slow motion to save your cabbages. Priceless!!!

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  9. oh! i know of what you speak! our plants were getting decimated by snails. great on notecards, horrible on basil. or cabbage!

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  10. Hi Ada, thanks for stopping by Wandering Spice! It's my first time here and it seems I've stumbled on the only thing I fear... slugs (no this is not a joke). AH!

    I'll be back real soon to check in and see what you're up to... after these pesky critters mingle right off the top of the page :) :)

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  11. Oh gosh, that really sounds awful! Sluggo is a must have around here since they have a love affair with my hydrangeas and I'm not ok with that relationship!

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  12. I could probably do that if it weren't for the slug goop. That pretty makes my stomach turn just *thinking* about it. However, when we have our own garden (someday) and mysterious holes begin appearing, I hope this post pops into my head so that I will know exactly what to do. :)

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