<
https://theconversation.com/could-we-learn-to-love-slugs-and-snails-in-our-gardens-179568>
"Before you squash or poison the next slug or snail you see in your garden,
consider this: The British Royal Horticultural Society no longer classifies
these gastropods as pests. Why on earth would a leading gardening organisation
do that, you might wonder. After all, slugs and snails are usually seen as a
problem, given their eagerness to devour the plants you’ve lovingly nurtured.
The issue is that they are part of nature. Slugs and snails play a key role in
healthy ecosystems, acting to break down organic material as well as providing
a source of food for blue-tongued lizards, frogs and kookaburras.
So can we learn to live with slugs and snails? Yes, if we reframe how we see
these invertebrates. After all, the definition of “pest” is based on our
perception and can change over time. By rejecting the “pest” status of many
invertebrates and advocating planet friendly gardening, the horticultural
society directly connects the local actions of gardeners to our global
biodiversity crisis.
Their principal entomologist, Andrew Salisbury, has argued that “now is the
time to gracefully accept, even actively encourage, more of this life into our
gardens”.
This doesn’t have to mean letting them destroy your lettuces. Nature can help.
Enticing lizards, frogs and birds to your garden can help control slugs and
snails and boost biodiversity."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
