Plants That Slugs Do Not Like

Are Slugs A Problem In Your Garden?

Slugs can be a huge frustration for gardeners, especially in the Pacific Northwest. However, there are plenty of plants we can grow that slugs try to avoid. Some of these, like thyme, can be planted in a fence around a vegetable bed, while others are relatively worry free flowers for your garden.

Here are a few of the annuals that slugs are not particularly fond of. However, if they are hungry they will eat almost anything:

Annuals

Ageratum
Allysum
Begonia
Cosmos
Geranium
Lobelia
Nasturtium
Nemesia
Portulaca
Painted daisy (Pyrethrum)
Verbena
Zinnia

Here are a few of the perennials that seem to be somewhat resistant to slug damage. Always remember slugs love new foliage growth, so there may be times when they will bother some plants, and other times when they will move onto more desirable ones. Here is a partial list of some popular perennials:

Perennials

Columbine
Arabis
Armeria
Astilbe
Aubrietia
Campanula
Dianthus (Pinks, Carnations)
Dicentra (Bleeding Hearts)
Geum
Gypsolphila (Baby’s Breath)
Helleborus
Hemcrocallis (Day Lily)
Iberis (Candytuft)
Lupine
Peonies
Rudbeckia
Sedum
Thyme

For some reason slugs tend to avoid plants with hairy leaves or those with a milky sap.

If you have a particular plant that you really like and the slugs like too, you can use slug defense product to surround the plant and protect it from slug damage. This could be copper wire or mesh, spikes, or any number of other products. You can also surround the planting with a sprinkling of diatomaceous earth.