In article , Sacha
says...
Capping this, Ray told me the story of a couple who marched into the nursery
a few years ago in a state of righteous fury - seriously annoyed. They told
him that having bought some plants from us they'd spent an hour or more
picking out insect eggs from the compost in which the plants were potted.
Ray scooped up a handful of slow-release fertiliser pellets and said "did
they look like this?" Guess the answer.


Showing my ignorance here, but like they say better look a fool for five
minutes than remain a fool for ever! I've sometimes bought plants in
pots with clumps of little "beads" either down the edge of the pot or at
the bottom of the rootball. The Mrs and I can never agree if they are
slow release fertiliser or the eggs of slugs / snails? They are
typically around 1/8" diameter, perhaps slightly larger and usually in
clusters of around 20 or more. Their colour is usually white or creamy
through to brown. If I squash them they burst and are full of a watery
like substance. Are these eggs or fertiliser? Is there a clear way of
telling the difference?
--
David in Normandy