Gardening expert reveals two 'genius' way to get rid of slugs for good

Say farewell to pesky slugs with these two ingenious methods. Dealing with slugs can be a real headache for gardeners, particularly when they target your prized plants.

However, a gardening aficionado has shared two unexpected and completely natural tactics to banish these slimy creatures once and for all, reports the Manchester Evening News. On TikTok, @notmrspock_fact said: "Trouble with slugs, eh? Fed up with using slug pellets? This is what I do. I had problems for years with slugs on the dahlias and look at them now, all the leaves are actually perfect because I use these - chives!"

It turns out that slugs have an aversion to anything onion-related, so planting their botanical cousins like chives and leeks near vulnerable plants can act as a repellent. This advice is also supported by TV gardening expert James Wong, who notes that slugs are just one of many insects that detest the chemical emitted by these plants.

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The key substance here is 'allicin', which not only wards off harmful microbes but also gives onions their distinctive sharp aroma. @notmrspock_fact said: "They stink - I can smell them from here. They hate chives, so plant these in with your plants."

For those particularly worried about slugs nibbling on their lupins, the gardener has shared a nifty trick. It involves whipping up a garlic spray by blending two crushed garlic cloves with a pint of water. Garlic, much like onions, contains allicin which is known to repel slugs.

The green-fingered guru said: "Give [the plants] a spray - the slugs hate garlic! Facts."

The gardening hack has caught on with TikTok users, with many endorsing its effectiveness. One said: "I put garlic around my garden bed and it really helped. I never thought about garlic water." A second said: "Great idea! I use garlic stench water!"

But if this tactic doesn't work for you, don't worry. There are plenty of other simple and cheap methods that could do the job.

Previously, experts from Rentokil have also revealed that sprinkling crushed eggshells around plants can act as a slug barrier. Speaking to the Mirror, they said: "Crushed egg shells work as a great home remedy of slugs. This is because slugs don't like moving across sharp objects, although it isn't not impossible for them to do, they just prefer not to."

"Broken nutshells perform similarly to egg shells when it comes to repelling slugs [too]. Shatter the nutshells into small fragments, and form a defensive circle around your plants. Any slugs that dare to venture near your greens will promptly make a U-turn."

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