An environmental - non/environmental problem: Snails/slugs, dogs.

[UTUSN]

So for years have been griping about garden snails. Yeah yeah, I know, they have a right to live and performs some kind of role.

O.K., that said, they are disgusting. They crawl up everything - bush and tree trunks (not chawing the leaves) sliming everything. Have tried the internet

"solutions" - beer saucers, bait, harvesting.

Harvesting is disgusting.

So I called the big box store distributor/manufacturer in the great NorthWest and was told their product is for management, not for DELETION because their previous product for deletion KILLED DOGS.

O.K., so fine, am supposed to tolerate the snails - up and down all the bush/tree/wood/plastic surfaces.

[TreasonousBastard]

1. Well, you could eat them. Non-marine snails are not poisonous...

but must be cooked thoroughly to kill off any parasites or bacteria. Some are even reputed to taste pretty good.

Yeah, I know, that sounds horrible, but Europeans have been eating snails forever.

I'll go away now.

[sprinkleeninow]

2. The short answer is 'yes'.

[MiHale]

3. We have problems with Gypsy Moths and found this...

https://www.tanglefoot.com/products/insect-control/tree-tanglefoot-insect-barrier

I have no idea if it can work on snails/slugs and bushes would still be a problem. Works on trees though!

Gypsy moth caterpillars are so disgusting they crawl up the tree then drop on everything.

****I know the name has changed for the G. moths but I don’t recall it.

[hunter]

4. We used to have a terrible snail and slug problem in the rainy season...

... until the starlings arrived in our region of California.

One invasive species (snails) controlled by another (starlings.)

We keep a very bird friendly yard and birds act as pest control. Various little birds will eat aphids, for example.

The bad thing about birds is they eat our grapes.

We also let our yard dry out more than we used to. If some plants don't make it through the dry season we can call that water conservation. In this dry environment most snails don't survive until the next rainy season. It helps too that most of our neighbors have abandoned the traditional green lawns and tropical looking plants that used to be common in California suburban landscapes.

We don't use any pesticides, herbicides, etc. People who use these end up with the pests and weeds that are most resistant. This is especially true of cockroaches. Once you are using insecticides to clear out cockroaches you'll always be using insecticides to clear out cockroaches. If there's a healthy population of other less annoying invertebrates in a place then the cockroaches can't compete. I'm not kidding when I say the spiders and ants eat the babies of any cockroaches that find their way into our home or yard.