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Snail
impact on borage underleaves
February 15th:
Lifted the row cover from the plants as the constant rain seemed to be
squashing them under it. Went out the next morning to find that snails
had taken this as a signal to feast. The radishes were far enough along
that they may recover but there are only half a dozen seedlings left of
every other plant that was sown. The rest have been mown off at ground
level.
Snails
are surprisingly selective about what they graze on and what they
devastate. Usually a total loss like this occurs only when plants are
in stress - say by being suddenly exposed to 20% more daylight than
they had been getting, when the grower yanks away the row cover.
Normally, snails eat the underleaves of mature plants and fallen
debris. They take the occasional bite out of a vegetable.
While their impact is
noticeable, only certain plants take real damage. I usually take this
as a warning sign that other things, like water, soil or sunlight need
adjustment to make the plant more robust. We will reseed the greens
garden and be glad for the hundredth time we were not counting on a
crop to survive.
Text
and images Copyright 1998 Cyndi Kirkpatrick. All rights reserved
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