Living off the Smell of an Oily Rag » PestsLiving off the Smell of an Oily Rag

Slugs & snails

reader — Thu, 18 May 2017 04:01:49 +0000

Trish from Tauranga says, “To keep slugs and snails away from newly planted seedlings, just make a small flat container out of tin foil and put 3 or 4 slices of cucumber on it. The cucumber and tin foil together seem to give off an unnoticed smell which slugs and snails don’t like. I put a couple of little holes in the bottom so they didn’t collect rainwater. We have a raised garden about 2.5 x 3 metres and I used 3 small containers about 12 x 9cm.”

Mouse trap

reader — Thu, 16 Mar 2017 03:05:48 +0000

Tony from Blenheim has this suggestion for a bait free mouse trap! “Tired of using up all the peanut butter to catch that pesky mouse? Here’s how to do it cleanly without bait. Mice always avoid open spaces if they can – they prefer to run alongside the skirting board. We can use this trait to our advantage. Instead of baiting your trap (the black plastic ones work best) just set it and push it up against the skirting with the ‘mouth’ against the wall. The mouse will run along the wall and over the trap and Bingo, no more mice! Trust me, it works.”

I am sure Tony’s idea will be useful to the many families who are experiencing an invasion of mice now that the cooler weather has set in – especially those oily raggers who have a garden and keep poultry. Like Tony we have found the plastic traps do work better than traditional ones, and they are easier to set. Some of the modern traps get pretty fancy with pre-loaded bait but we found a thin slice of cheese pressed onto the tongue of the plastic trap works better than peanut butter – but maybe the mice up our way just don’t like peanut butter!

Whitefly

reader — Sat, 22 Oct 2016 18:10:30 +0000

Annette from Auckland asks, “How do I get rid of whitefly in my garden?”

Pest control

reader — Wed, 05 Oct 2016 23:28:15 +0000

A reader from Northland says he collects roadkill for use in predator traps on his property. We like that idea – dead pests being used to catch live pests so the good wildlife can survive. If his traps are fully baited he digs the remains into his garden to become blood and bone fertiliser.

Still on the topic of pest control, we think it’s great that central government has made a serious commitment to pest eradication and set the lofty goal for the country to be free of rats, stoats and possums by 2050. We encourage all lifestyle block owners to join the “Eradication Army”. For those oily raggers wanting to source traps, try your local regional council, which usually sells traps at their cost – or check the wide range of traps and baits that are available online from sites like traps.co.nz.

A reader has some advice on reducing heating costs. “Reorganise the layout of your house so that most of your living is done in the sunniest rooms. Most modern houses are designed to capture the sun, but some of the older homes have things a little back to front – like morning sun in a bedroom instead of the dining room. Change room use to maximise the use of natural heat.”

Roger

reader — Thu, 07 Jul 2016 21:56:35 +0000

I was pleased to find a slug and snail product in his local garden centre that is safe for pets and wildlife. I have never used a slug and snail bait because I have been worried about poisoning bird life, but now I can blitz the blighters worry-free.

Julia, Christchurch.

reader — Thu, 09 Jun 2016 07:18:55 +0000

I use wood chips to keep slugs and snails off the garden – spread it liberally around the paths and the slugs and snails won’t go over the chips into the garden.

Anna

reader — Thu, 21 Apr 2016 05:48:08 +0000

A good tip for preventing slugs and snails getting seedlings is to use broken eggshells – also pine needles if you have them.

Cats poo!

reader — Wed, 18 Nov 2015 05:59:20 +0000

Denise from Auckland has one of those common questions, you could say its a pet hate for many. “Can anyone give me a tip that works. I am so fed up of cats fouling around my home its got ridiculous its everywhere, deck, roof and under caravan under cars front door under windows. I am having to clear daily its getting so bad.”

Aphid problems?

reader — Thu, 29 Oct 2015 19:34:16 +0000

Warren from Tauranga asks, “Does anyone know how to kill aphids on a swan plant bush, without killing the caterpillars?”

SWOT team

Oily Rag Ed' — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 20:27:44 +0000

To combat pesky flies around the home, use sticky ozone-friendly flypaper, not sprays, or take up arms – and form a fly swot SWOT team. Engage in combat with those pesky flys.