Hi. I use oyster shells in my beds. I've gathered them from all over. Oyster bars, grocery stores, fish markets, etc... I happen to live about 4hrs from the gulf coast so I can take a drive down south and get sacks of them. I boil them for about 1hr and then let them dry in the sun for a couple days. Crush them in a potato sack and mix into your beds. they will help keep snails away. The oyster shells are sharp. Snails are tender. A quick brushby and its lights out for Sam the snail! I'd suggest you not walk barefoot in your garden beds either.. not that you do.. Feet are pretty tender too! One word of caution.. Calcium. Make sure your plants are ok with calcium. Marine shells are made from calcium and your soil will leech the calcium (and other trace elements) out of the shells. This generally isn't a problem, in fact, many garden centers sell powdered shell as fertilizer. Ask your plant person at the garden center how a particular plant will take to calcium, then, start your oyster hunt! It may actually be more fun than gardening!
Course, if you don't want to do all that, eggshells, ashes from the fireplace, or, as the previous poster mentioned, diatomaceous earth. But, where's the fun in diatomaceous earth aside from trying to say it 10 times fast!
Can crushed shells be bought in garden stores? I have been told they deter snails from flower beds.?
Use ,"Dietematious Earth "instead. It's used in pool filters,and is a heck of allot easier to get. Bye (Don't know if that's spelled correctly)
Reply:yes you can buy crushed shells, but they will not help keep the snail out. Ya need to buy this stuff called "slug bait"
Reply:diatamaceous earth I think.
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