How to Get Rid of Slugs on Aaron’s Beard Plants

Aaron’s beard, also known as Hypericum calycinum, is a popular groundcover plant known for its bright yellow flowers that bloom from summer to fall This low-growing perennial looks beautiful crawling along slopes and spilling from planters and hanging baskets.

Unfortunately, the foliage and flowers of Aaron’s beard are irresistible to slugs and snails. These slimy pests can quickly defoliate and damage plants beyond recovery. If you’ve noticed ragged holes, slime trails, or even disappearing flowers and buds, slugs are likely the culprits.

Getting rid of slugs and protecting aarons beard takes persistence and multiple control methods used together. But with some simple strategies, you can defeat the slugs and keep your Aaron’s beard vibrant and healthy. Here’s how to get rid of slugs on Aaron’s beard plants for good:

Remove Daytime Hiding Spots

Slugs and snails are most active at night or on cloudy, humid days During the day, they hide in dark, moist areas like under boards, garden debris, or dense ground cover plants

Start slug control by eliminating daytime hiding spots

• Clear away boards, rocks, plant debris, weeds, and heavy mulch that provide moist shelter. Slugs can gather under just about anything on the ground.

• Thin out overgrown plants and ground covers near the Aaron’s beard. Dense vegetation provides the cool, humid spaces slugs seek out.

• Prune back the Aaron’s beard plants if they have become overgrown. Remove any dead branches or foliage. This takes away protective cover.

• Use stones, gravel, or other inorganic mulch rather than wood chips or other moist organic matter that appeals to slugs.

• Keep the landscape tidy with regular debris cleanup and pruning. This gives slugs fewer places to hide and lay eggs during the day.

Water Carefully and Improve Drainage

Slugs need moisture, so excessive watering and poor drainage create an environment they love. Here are some ways to make the habitat less appealing:

• Allow the soil to dry slightly between waterings. Avoid frequent, heavy watering.

• Water early in the day so plants dry out by evening when slugs are active.

• Improve drainage in soggy areas of the garden with grading or drainage channels. Aaron’s beard tolerates dry conditions better than wet soil.

• Use drip irrigation or soaker hoses rather than sprinklers. This keeps foliage dry, an environment slugs avoid.

• Mulch around Aaron’s beard to prevent moisture loss. But leave an inch or two bare around the stem to keep the crown and foliage dry.

• During damp weather, watch for condensation on plants, which signals higher slug activity. Wipe leaves dry to remove this attractive moisture.

Use Copper Barriers

Copper foil, tape, and other copper products form a barrier that slugs avoid. The copper gives them a mild electric shock when their slime touches it.

Use copper:

• As strips around pot rims, garden bed edges, or tree trunks to block access.

• To make slug fence sections around sensitive plants. Some copper mesh products are designed as portable barriers.

• To make bands around plant stems or crowns to protect lower leaves and buds.

• As a mulch topping around plants. Some slug granules contain copper.

Copper loses effectiveness when it oxidizes and turns greenish. Replace strips and other barriers annually for best control.

Trap Them

Trapping gives you an easy way to catch slugs while also monitoring their population. Here are some effective trapping methods:

• Set out shallow containers like jar lids filled with cheap beer. Slugs are attracted to the yeasty odor but drown when they crawl in.

• Place rough-textured, moist boards around the garden. In the morning, flip them over and dispose of the slugs and snails clinging underneath.

• Make pitfall traps by sinking cups into the ground with the rims at soil level. Check these each morning and dispose of trapped slugs.

• Wrap a piece of wet burlap or an upturned flower pot on the soil to attract slugs. Collect and kill them daily.

• Attract slugs to a dish of corn meal or bran flakes. Dispose of them once they congregate there.

Check traps daily and remove all captured slugs. Trapping alone rarely eliminates a serious slug problem. Use it along with other methods.

Apply Slug Bait Sparingly

Iron phosphate slug baits provide effective control when applied correctly:

• Scatter bait pellets on the soil around affected plants, especially near the stems and crowns. Apply a very light dusting.

• Reapply bait after rain or every two weeks during the growing season. Use the minimal amount needed.

• Avoid heaping on bait excessively. Leftover pellets contribute to soil contamination.

• Pick up and dispose of any uneaten bait at the end of the season.

• Use slug bait together with traps and other methods for best control. Baits alone may not fully resolve heavy slug damage.

Always follow label directions carefully when using baits. Take care to keep baits away from children and pets.

Invite Beneficial Predators

Certain animals feed on slugs and can provide natural pest control:

• Ground beetles and their larvae attack slug eggs and young slugs. Avoid killing these predators.

• Attract insectivorous birds like thrushes and robins with plantings they favor. Provide shallow water for bathing and drinking.

• Toads feast on slugs. Create semi-shady, moist areas in the garden to attract them. Avoid using insecticides, which reduce toad numbers.

• Ducks, geese, and chickens will catch and eat slugs. Allow poultry to forage in the garden occasionally if possible.

• Release decollate snails. These predatory snails consume eggs and young slugs but won’t damage plants.

A healthy population of predators will gradually reduce the number of slugs. But also use other control methods for immediate relief from damage.

Get Rid of Slugs Manually

Don’t underestimate the value of old-fashioned slug picking! Here are some tips:

• Patrol the garden at night with a flashlight and handpick slugs on plants or ground. Drop them into a container of soapy water.

• Crush larger slugs underfoot or slice them in half with sharp shears. Be sure to kill them.

• In the morning, search under boards and debris in damp areas. Remove and kill any slugs and eggs found.

• After watering, search for slugs that emerge. Kill them before they can hide again.

• Check pot rims and undersides for hiding slugs. Scrape off egg masses.

Be thorough when going the manual route. Persistence pays off as you eliminate more slugs over time.

Maintain Vigilance

Getting rid of every last slug is difficult. After implementing control measures, be diligent about these maintenance practices:

• Regularly scout the garden for new damage and the presence of slugs. Especially monitor moist, shady areas.

• Repeat trapping, baiting, and handpicking whenever slugs reappear. Don’t let them regain a foothold.

• Keep removing litter and debris where slugs can breed. Keep foliage dry.

• Continue attracting predators to maintain natural biocontrol.

• Rotate bait products to prevent slugs from developing bait resistance.

• Reapply copper barriers that have oxidized and restore traps disturbed by rain or sprinklers.

• Review and adjust irrigation practices if slugs persist in drier months.

With persistence, a combination of tactics, and attentive garden maintenance, you can successfully protect your Aaron’s beard from ugly slug damage. Don’t become discouraged if some slugs still sneak through. Just stay vigilant and proactive in your control efforts.

When Damage Persists

Occasionally, heavy slug and snail infestations continue despite all control efforts. Severe or ongoing damage calls for more aggressive measures to fully protect Aaron’s beard:

• Apply iron phosphate bait more heavily and frequently, up to once a week during peak feeding periods. Always follow label directions.

• For enclosed spaces like greenhouses, use the biological control Nemaslug, a nematode that infects and kills slugs.

• Try slug repellent products containing either ferric phosphate or denatonium benzoate (Bitrex). Reapply these as needed.

• Switch to stronger but toxic slug baits containing metaldehyde or methiocarb as a last resort if iron phosphate fails. Use these with extreme care.

• Consider replacing heavily infested Aaron’s beard with resistant groundcovers like sedum, candytuft, or Spanish lavender. Also replace especially vulnerable varieties.

With persistence and multiple integrated controls, Aaron’s beard will thrive and reward you with months of bright golden blossoms. Don’t let a few slimy slugs ruin your enjoyment of this stellar garden performer. Stay vigilant and pro