slugs and snails

turtles/tortoises eat them
laying ducks eat scads of them.

copper is an expensive barrier.

the edge of a vertical (window)screening "wall" apparently deters the
slimers.

I've never sufficiently tried any of these methods except the ducks. also
in central calif, restricting water to edible zones is very effective snail
control. our climate resembles Greece's. dry summers.


"Andy Hunt" wrote in message
...
Thank Sacha, I think I might give the Tumbler tomatoes a go - I'm lucky,
my
back yard is a real sun-trap, and it has a high wall so it's very
sheltered
from the wind. It's an end-terrace not far out of the centre of Bury
though,
so I don't get that many birds round my way (mostly sparrows and pigeons,
although there are a few seagulls which hang about the scrap yards not far
from my house!). I get a few bats coming round though! There's a park not
far away.

I do actually have a garden as well, but it's full up with herbs, trees,
bulbs and bushes and the like. I've got bags of space for veg though, as
long as I get enough pots.

I'm tempted to use slug pellets on the pathways around the pots, so that
the
slugs don't get through the first line of defences. It's either that or
machine-gun emplacements manned by an army of mercenary mice. It's a shame
they can't just kind of "get the message" . . . death seems a rather
unjust
price to have to pay for the crime of trying to get a good meal, even for
a
slug!

Thanks for the tips - food for thought!

Andrew