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of the dahlia is a copper ring which, designed to deflect slugs and snails. The copper creates a sort of electrical frisson which makes the gastropods shy away and head for the hills.Imagine my distress this morning when I discover my dahlia de-nuded of most

for the Spartans but they gave it a pretty good shot).Slug and snail control has been covered here a few times so you should have lots of available weaponry in the battle. Should you decide (as you should) that hostas are worth the trouble then it's easier

Every year the RHS publishes a list of popular pests: popular in that they are the ones about whom the RHS entomologists have had the most enquiries. Top of the charts this year are slugs and snails (everybody's bête noir) followed by the harlequin

The whole world seems to be teeming with life at the moment: the birdsong is delightful, the snails are on the march (in spite of my discovering at least three huge hibernation areas during the winter) and the plants are growing at phenomenal speed

Sometimes the best things are the subtle or quiet things. A little rustle of wind through a tree, the distant knock-knocking of a thrush beating seven bells out of a snail or, in this case, a modest wildflower lurking among the rough grass beside a

.The idea of wide, slightly quilted, deep bluish-green hosta leaves is captivating, but often the reality is completely different. The reality involves slugs and snails, nightly chewing the edges and perforating the centres of the leaves, leaving them

, snails tend to cunningly hide amongst them. Beware: the spines face inwards so to reach in for the snail is fine but if you pull your hand out again too fast you will undoubtedly end up bleeding. Here it is with a helenium called 'Moorheim Beauty

snail' but I just cannot learn to 'love a forsythia'.Please dig them out and plant something else. If you must have a yellow shrub flowering now, then try Chimonanthus praecox; it bears pale, lemon meringue-yellow flowers and a scent that reminds one