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If you live in a region with snails or slugs, then you know how damaging they can be to gardens. What if I told you I’ve found a solution to keep these hungry little creatures out of your garden that is simple, cost-effective, low maintenance, and you don’t even have to kill them? Would you believe me? A year ago I didn’t quite believe it myself. But now that I know it works, I’m excited to share it with you.

NOTE: If you don’t want to read all the way to the end, here’s the tape info: LOViMAG Copper Foil Tape (2inch X 33 FT) with Conductive Adhesive for Guitar and EMI Shielding, Crafts, Electrical Repairs, Grounding. Here’s a link to the exact item you see in the video: https://amzn.to/3vLKwT6

Watch, “How to Deter Slugs with Copper Tape” on YouTube >

Why get rid of slugs and snails in the garden?

We live in the pacific northwest, which is prime habitat for slugs and snails. One of my most heartbreaking moments as a gardener came when I went to pluck a ripe, juicy tomato. I’d been waiting days for it to achieve the perfect level of ripeness. But when the morning came to finally harvest it, something didn’t feel right. I turned it around to find that whole inside of the tomato was gone. In its place was the slug that had eaten the fruits of my labor. 

That’s when I got serious about keeping slugs out of our garden.

Understanding Slugs, Snails, and How to Deter Them in the Garden.

First a little natural history about these animals. Banana slugs are native to the region. They are large and fairly smooth overall. Banana slugs are usually greenish with black spots, but can vary in color. They prefer the forest and eating dead or decomposing things like poop and fungus. They actually help improve soil. Most snails and the European or black garden slug are non-native. These species tend to be more grooved and bumpy. They are the ones responsible for devouring our gardens. Slugs and snails are most active at night. Often all we see is their slime trails leading away from our decimated plants. 

I did a lot of research on how to keep slugs out of the garden. I knew right away we didn’t want to use poison. I’m a cancer survivor and Kevin has autoimmune issues, so we try to keep as natural a lifestyle as possible. We also didn’t want to accidentally poison other animals on our property. 

I read about things like laying down borders of sluggo, crushed eggshells, or epsom salts. In a rainy climate like ours these seemed like a lot of hassle to keep up, and I wasn’t sure how they might impact the soil balance. Next I learned a lot about beer traps. These also seemed high-maintenance and even though I don’t want slugs in my garden, luring them in to kill them just didn’t feel right to me. 

All this research got me thinking about the years Kevin and I have spent working with wild animals and helping manage human-wildlife conflicts. The one thing we’ve found to be true no matter the situation is that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So I started to think about how we could make our garden uninviting to slugs in the first place. Around that time I came across a picture in an online homesteading forum that showed a lush raised garden bed featuring a strip of copper tape. There wasn’t a single bit of slug damage to be seen. The author said the copper tape had allowed him to grow his best garden in years.

I decided the copper tape was worth a try! When we put our first big garden on this homestead last spring, copper tape was on the list. 

How Have We used the Copper Tape to Deter Slugs in Our Gardens?

We applied the copper tape near the top edge of our stock tanks. Some people thought we applied it as a decorative element, but really we applied it to deter slugs. Even though it’s starting to show some wear after nine months, it’s keeping slugs out of the garden.

Two examples of applying copper tape to smaller portable garden containers can be found on our patio. On hard plastic containers it’s very easy to apply and sticks well. On a cloth strawberry bag we put the copper tape along the bottom because it’s difficult to find a spot among the side pockets. But even with these containers it’s working effectively.  

An example of how you can apply the copper tape in a less permanent way is by making a copper ring. I’ve seen people do this with milk jugs by cutting a strip out of them. I didn’t have that available, so I used a strip of cardboard wrapped in duct tape and the copper tape on the outside. Something like this is great to put around an individual plant. 

What Type of Copper Tape Works to Keep Slugs and Snails out of the Garden?

The copper tape that we are using is two inches thick. It comes in rolls that are 33 feet long. Each roll cost $12.00. It’s marketed for guitar repair and other kinds of electrically conductive repairs, which means it has a high amount of copper in it. We think that’s probably why it’s been so effective. 

So there you go, that’s how we have figured out how to deter slugs from our garden. By using copper tape we are able to peacefully let them go about their business while enjoying a bountiful harvest.

We are using LOViMAG Copper Foil Tape (2inch X 33 FT) with Conductive Adhesive for Guitar and EMI Shielding, Crafts, Electrical Repairs, Grounding. Here’s a link to the exact product: https://amzn.to/3vLKwT6