1st Trick: Opt for Colorful Leaf Salads
Did you think all salads were the same? Think again! In addition to varying your diet, choosing salad varieties with colorful leaves can have an unexpected advantage: deterring slugs. Salads with colorful leaves are often less appetizing to slugs, and this is due to several subtle reasons.
Firstly, the texture of these purple leaves is usually tougher or thicker, making it difficult for these small mollusks to chew and digest. While tender green leaves are easier for these small creatures to nibble on.
Moreover, the pigments responsible for leaf coloration, such as anthocyanins in red or purple leaves, can have a natural repellent effect on slugs.
Lastly, colorful leaves offer less effective camouflage for slugs, which can increase their vulnerability to predators.
So, although salads with colorful leaves are not entirely immune to attacks, they are often less of a target for these creeping garden pests. Plus, it will brighten up your garden. It’s what they call combining the useful with the pleasant, isn’t it?
A (small) selection of our favorite red leaf varieties:
- The ‘Lollo Rossa’ cutting lettuce is a variety of curly lettuce distinguished by its jagged leaves of vivid colors, blending shades of green and purple-red.
- The beautiful red lettuce ‘Rossa di Trento’ is an Italian variety characterized by its green leaves with dark red, almost burgundy, tips, forming a compact and elegant rosette.
- The cutting lettuce ‘Grenadine’ is known for its lobed and wavy leaves, with a beautiful garnet red color that adds a touch of color to any garden. Its taste is sweet with a hint of hazelnut.
- The ‘Palla Rossa’ chicory, also Italian, is distinguished by its round and tight rosette of leaves, of a deep ruby red. Its slightly bitter taste offers an interesting contrast in salads and Mediterranean dishes.
- The cutting lettuce ‘Red Salad Bowl’ is an attractive variety with cut and curly leaves, of a bright orange-red color. Its crunchy texture and sweet taste make it a versatile choice for brightening up salads.
2nd Trick: Amputate Young Lettuces
If you thought gardening was a matter of patience and gentleness, think again! Sometimes, you have to know how to act a little and put yourself in the shoes of the slug to fool our beloved salads.
When your lettuces and salads are still young, tender, and have only 4 to 5 leaves, take a few minutes to hand-pick some leaves.
This will simulate a slug attack! Your young plant, thus assaulted, will be pushed to defend itself. Because your little green wonders have their own defense system! In response to this ‘false attack,’ the lettuce will slightly modify its taste to become less attractive to slugs. This is called phytochemistry.
So, don’t hesitate to play a little trick on your plants to help them protect themselves. You’ll see it’s a trick that can save you a lot of leaves!
