How to Keep Ants and Slugs Out of Strawberries

Ant Control

• 1

  Plant ant-repellent plants such as tansy, catnip, peppermint, spearmint pennyroyal and sage around strawberry patches as a barrier to deter ants. Also tear a few leaves of these plants and sprinkle them over the strawberry patch.

• 2

  Sprinkle diatomaceous earth over ant-infested strawberry patches. Diatomaceous earth is prepared from the fossilized remains of marine phytoplankton, and cuts through the exoskeleton of ants when it attaches to their body and kills them.

• 3

  Mix a 50-50 solution of water and vinegar or lemon juice and spray it over your strawberry patch to repel ants, using a spray bottle.

Slug Control

• 4

  Plant strawberries in a hanging basket. This will prevent slugs from infesting and destroying them.

• 5

  Wrap copper barrier foil around strawberry planting beds and boxes to repel slugs. The copper in the barrier foil reacts with the slimy secretion produced by the slug. This causes the slug to have a nervous system disruption similar to an electric shock, which deters it from attacking the strawberries.

• 6

  Fill a small cup with stale beer and place it in slug-infested strawberry patches. The slugs will be attracted to the beer and will drown.