strawberry pests

[purduevet]

I have strawberries that I planted last spring- they seem to be getting ready to go crazy with producing perfect berries- except..... I have had about 5 ripen, and all of them have had something nibbling on them. I have seen "sow bugs" on them, but have been told it's usually slugs that start it, and the sow bugs move in. Does anyone know of any way to thwart them without using chemicals? They of course don't swoop in til they're almost ripe... Any thoughts or help would be appreciated. By the way- they were bedded down with straw overwinter, and I removed that early spring, so there's not much between the low strawberries and dirt- a VERY thin layer of mulch and some random straw leftover. Would it be best to put some kind of mulch down or worse... thanks for any help!

[Kisal]

There are a lot of threads discussing the best way to keep slugs and snails away from one's plants. Among other things, you can use copper wire or strips, or set out shallow containers of beer. (The critters are attracted to the malt in the beer, get drunk from drinking it, and drown.) Type the word slugs in the search box at the top of the page. You will find a lot of information.