Leatherleaf slugs
Flat gray brown slugs feed at night and chew holes into ripening berries and leaves, leaving shiny slime trails.
Crops it attacks
Where the damage shows
When to act
Twice a week, check the beds at night with a flashlight. Act when you find slugs on more than 1 in 10 plants or fresh feeding on the berries.
What to spray
Active ingredients only, never brands. The IRAC group tells how it works: switch to a different group next time, so the pest does not learn to survive it. Spray only when the damage is worth the cost, and only with products registered with the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority for your crop. Follow the label. The Shopee and Lazada links only show who sells something with that active ingredient, not a recommendation of any seller or product.
Sprays do not reach them; pick slugs by hand at night, keep weeds and old leaves off the beds, and keep berries off the wet soil with mulch.
How to prevent it
- Pick slugs by hand at night and drop them in salty or soapy water.
- Keep weeds, old leaves and runners off the beds. Slugs hide under them by day.
- Mulch with plastic or dry straw so the berries stay off the wet soil.
- Raise the beds and improve drainage so the soil surface dries out.
- Lay boards or wet sacks between rows. Collect the slugs hiding under them each morning.
Natural enemies and biological help
- Ducks or chickens let in between crops eat many slugs. Ground beetles and firefly larvae prey on them too.
Where this comes from
Not sure it is this one?
Many pests look alike. Send a photo to Anee, the smart farm technician in anee.io. She reads it with your crop, its age and the weather, and tells you what it most likely is and what to do first. In Tagalog or English.