They usually come at night, when it is damp and cool and they feel completely unobserved. They slowly crawl to the set table to help themselves indignantly to the leaves, stems and buds. Can you protect clematis from being eaten by slugs?
How to protect clematis from slugs?
To protect clematis from snail damage, it is recommended to collect snails, lay out slug pellets or plant herbs such as thyme, savory, oregano and lavender. Precautionary barriers such as sand, gravel or snail fences can also be helpful.
Do snails like clematis?
Snails eat the clematisgladly. But if they find something that whets their appetite even more, they'd rather crawl past the clematis.
The larger the clematis, the less interesting it is for snails. The clematis is particularly interesting for these animals when it shoots. They love to feast on the fresh shoots and eat them mercilessly. Usually the young leaves and buds of the clematis are particularly affected. They like to eat snails!
What damage can snails do to clematis?
If the snails attack a clematis when it is sprouting and are allowed to feed on it, the climbing plant is near its end andcan die Once it really gets going, the clematis defies it snails. For this reason, it is important to keep an eye on your clematis and check for slug damage in the first few weeks after planting. In the worst case, a clematis cannot sprout again after being completely eaten by slugs.
How do you fight snails on clematis?
The quickest way to help iscollecting the snails from the clematis. During the day, these animals usually hide in the shade, such as under the leaves of the clematis. So look carefully at where the snails are hiding, collect them and take them to a place where you can no longer cause any significant damage.
You can also sprinkle slug pellets (€9.00 on Amazon) around the clematis. This poisons the snails and can be picked up and disposed of. However, this method is not particularly ecological.
Can you prevent snails from eating your clematis?
In order to prevent these pests from appearing on the clematis in the first place, you can takevarious measures for prevention.
Here are a few of them:
- Put out slug pellets as a precaution
- Sprinkle sand or sharp gravel around the clematis
- Planting clematis in pots
- Attach snail fence or snail rings
- Put salads, marigolds, sunflowers etc. nearby that snails prefer to eat
Which plants keep snails away from clematis?
It is even easier to plantherbs that contain lots of essential oils (e.g. thyme, savory, oregano and lavender) in the immediate vicinity of the clematis. The snails are put off by the scent of the essential oils and prefer to run away.
The herbs can also serve as underplanting and thus provide shade in the root area of the climbing plant.
Tip
Look for snails on the clematis in the morning or evening
Since snails are usually out and about when it is dark and cool, you should go looking for snails in the evening or early morning hours. If necessary, grab a headlamp, a bucket, gardening gloves and let the search begin!
