Many gardeners are desperate to get rid of snails since they tend to eat nearly every plant imaginable. Fortunately, these are several ways to get rid of garden snails, though a combination of a few methods may be necessary to finally eliminate this pest. One of the main methods is to remove each snail from the garden by hand, and then place a snail-proof barrier in front of the plants. Traps can also be set for them so that they end up being the cause of their own demise, such as drowning in beer or other threatening liquids. Finally, applying dangerous substances like diatomaceous earth to the garden may also help get rid of garden snails.
It may sound basic and time-consuming, but picking up each snail by hand is a free, thorough way to eliminate most garden snails. Of course, it is impossible to know if all the snails have been picked up, and this should be done daily before dawn in order to make an impact. The good news is that once you have performed this chore for several days in a row, you can work on keeping the snails out by placing copper wire stripping around the plants, as garden snails will not typically cross this barrier. It is important to ensure that there are no snails near the plants when you do this since otherwise they will become trapped within the barrier, free to eat all of your plants.
If you are tired of picking up garden snails by hand, you can also set traps for them. One of the most well-known ways to trap a snail is to place a jar under some soil so that the opening is even with the ground. You should then put a little bit of beer in it so that garden snails that fall in will drown. This works well since snails tend to be attracted to the yeast in the beer. You can use stale beer for this, or even mix baking yeast, sugar, and water together in the jar.
Another threat to snails is diatomaceous earth, which is made up of small granules with sharp edges that can easily cut into these pests. Once they are cut, they will become dehydrated, which will quickly kill them. You can spread this substance around the garden, or put it in a spray bottle with water and then squirt the plants with it. Just be sure to protect your eyes and lungs from this product since it tends to irritate them.