Snails a problem? Try rice husk, says Anuradhapura farmer

Tennakoon KULASEKARA

A Lake House employee and a farmer in Anuradhapura I P Perera has found a method to protect home garden cultivations from the snail menace. Snails who invade home gardens in their hundreds destroy plants in home gardens by eating up the tender stems and leaves. Earlier farmers used to spread salt around their home gardens to ward off snails from their plots.

But this had proved impracticle during rains and wet weather since the salt barriers get liquidized and washed off enabling snails to enter the home gardens.

Perera said he had tried a different method to keep snails at bay by spreading rice husk around his home garden and this had proved very successful.