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Slug Control for Premises, Kennels and Yards

Slug Control uses tea saponin, a triterpenoid glycoside from the seed of Camellia oleifera, and is currently labeled for garden and crop use. Premise uses such as kennel runs, yards and building perimeters require a label amendment and state acceptance and are in development.

Why slugs are a premise problem

Slugs and snails move from planted areas onto paths, runs and feed and water areas in wet weather. They contaminate surfaces with mucus trails and can reach pet food and water bowls left outdoors. Kennels, shelters and homes with outdoor runs want a slug program that does not rely on bait pellets placed where dogs forage. The premise opportunity is a spray or drench for the boundary between planted areas and animal areas.

How tea saponin acts on mollusks

Saponins are surface-active glycosides that complex with cholesterol in cell membranes, disrupting the mucus-covered epithelium that mollusks depend on for moisture and gas exchange. Slugs are especially exposed because their skin is permeable and permanently wet. Tea seed saponin has a long history of use as a molluscicide in rice and aquaculture pond preparation. The same membrane activity makes saponins toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates, so any premise label will exclude drainage to water.

Status and what to use today

Use Slug Control only on the sites listed on its current label, which cover plants and planted areas. Kennel runs, hard surfaces and building perimeters are not yet on the label. We are generating residual and target-site data to support an amendment. Kennel and shelter operators who want to trial the premise use can register through the trials program. Trial sites record slug counts under refuge traps before and after treatment, plus rainfall, so residual can be compared across surfaces.

Key facts

The gray field slug, Deroceras reticulatum, is the most widespread pest slug in temperate regions and is active on the soil surface mainly at night in humid conditions (South 1992, Terrestrial Slugs: Biology, Ecology and Control, Chapman and Hall)
Saponins act by binding membrane sterols, which makes them hemolytic and toxic to fish (Francis et al. 2002, Br J Nutr 88:587)
It is unlawful to use a pesticide in a manner inconsistent with its labeling (FIFRA section 12(a)(2)(G))

How our delivery technology applies

Tea saponin is water soluble and washes off hard surfaces in rain, which limits residual on paths and runs. Encapsulation in biopolymer layers can slow leaching and hold the saponin at the surface where slugs cross, while reducing the fraction that moves into drainage. That release profile is what the premise trials are designed to measure.