I have received an e-mail from Mrs Wallis who tells me that her daughter, who lives in rented accommodation in Newcastle, is being plagued by slugs.

Quite a common problem you might say, but these slugs are in her kitchen. I have complete and utter empathy with MrsWallis's daughter.

I endured the same plague, many, many years ago during my student days. Six of us shared a large Victorian town house in Sheffield. It was cheap, extremely spacious but very basic (no hot water or central heating).

In the summer it was a palace, but in the winter months it became a very bleak place indeed.

Condensation would drip down the walls, mould grew on the wallpaper and slugs would creep in after dusk. It made night-time trips to the bathroom cringingly hazardous. I can still feel the icy slime of squashed slug oozing through my toes.

We never found out how they got in. We barricaded every conceivable crack and crevice and quarantined our rooms with lines of salt (had a hard time explaining the carpet stains to the landlord). Despite this, it seemed that most of them came in the kitchen entrance. This was the communal meeting place, and there was always something cooking or a kettle on, so it was the warmest place in the house. There were no extraction mechanisms, hence a constant build-up of moisture. We concluded that they must have been attracted to the warm, moist air.

The best-known remedy for slugs is the beer trap. This is simply a shallow container filled with a sweet alcoholic liquid. Like most creatures, they have a natural addiction for fermented fruit and happily drown in the beer filled container (plus it makes us feel better believing that they died in stupor).

Slugs tend to congregate in sheltered, dark and damp places. Use this to trap them. The easiest way of doing this is to leave the shells of grapefruit halves dotted around the garden. Prop up one side with a small stone and by morning you will have a small colony hiding away inside. Alternatively, smear jam onto short planks of wood or slate tiles and lay them jam side down (with one end raised a little). Just pick up the planks and dispose of them once they have a full crop of slugs.

If you do not have the stomach for killing the beasties, then you could try taking them to a far distant grazing ground and releasing them. However, do consider the findings of a recent experiment that discovered that slugs and snails can retrace their steps for up to two hundred metres.

Having quite sensitive, exposed bodies they do not like moving over anything sharp. Sand, gravel and crushed (baked) eggshell are the usual barriers. Pine needles too are very good, as are conifer clippings.

They have an aversion to copper, so thin strips of copper sheeting or wire wound around the tops of pots does work as a deterrent. Thick petroleum jelly smeared around tubs works well, especially if it is infused with eucalyptus or a similar oil.

The most ecological method of slug control is to encourage birds, frogs and hedgehogs into the garden. Leave a few slightly wilder areas, build a small pond or buy a hedgehog house.

On the positive side though, research has found that the slime exuded by slugs and snails has antiseptic and antibiotic properties. They are looking into it for the possible treatment of skin problems and even perhaps as a wrinkle reversal remedy. Maybe we should abandon the fight and encourage the slugs into the garden and let them wander over our worry lines. They do say that gardening keeps you young!

JOBS TO DO THIS WEEK

Cut down gladioli As they wither and die off, cut down the stems at ground level. Give the corms a week or so then remove them from the ground and store them in a cool, dry place until next spring.

Switch off pumps Freezing temperatures can damage pipes and pumps. The water doesn't need oxygenating now, so switch off or remove pumps and fountains.

Prop up pots Make sure that pots can drain adequately by propping them up on little feet or stones.

Brigid answers more horticultural questions every Sunday morning on Radio Cleveland, 95FM from 11am to midday.

You can email questions to her at The Northern Echo at brigidpress67.freeserve.co.uk or write to her care of Nature's World, Ladgate Lane, Acklam, Middlebrough.

Published: ??/??/2002