Simple Hack to Keep Slugs Out of Your Montana Garden

With warmer weather, a whole batch of creatures are reappearing in Montana. We aren't going to experience the deluge of cicadas the way the rest of the country is, but if you have a garden, you preparing for all manner of pests to arrive.

One of the most common garden pests to cause a headache for your Montana garden is slugs.

The Cardboard Hack for Gardening

Even though this wasn't the hack that I recently came across, I thought I'd mention this one, too. If you have an area of your landscape that you plan on changing, like converting grass to a flower bed, you can use cardboard to discourage growth. Cardboard can also be a replacement for weed mat.

I'm familiar with this hack because I use it. One of the first times I tried, I left large swaths of cardboard out for several weeks in the spring and it rained several times, so the cardboard was soggy and the ground underneath was damp. When I did remove the cardboard there were dozens (not exaggerating), possibly a hundred slugs on the underneath side.

I share this story because this is how I know this next hack I came across will probably work.

The Piece of Wood Hack for Slugs

You may have seen the beer hack for slugs, where you put a jar or can of beer in the ground near your plants and it acts like a trap. This hack might be a bit simpler.

In the video below all you have to do is find a spare piece of wood, spray it with some water, and set it near your garden. Similar to what happened with the cardboard in my garden, the slugs, and even snails, will attach to the wood and then you can transfer them somewhere away from your garden.

The gardener points out that thick planks work best.

What are your hacks, tips, or tricks for keeping pests out of your Montana garden?