Strawberry Pest Control and Pollination - Types of netting?

[wisconsindead]

Hey guys,

I have a ~35 ft long bed of strawberries that (hopefully) will survive the winter and comeback this spring. I would like to prevent birds and slugs from getting to the plants. I could probably make this happen with insect netting, but then I am not sure they will be pollinated. From what I understand, they can be wind pollinated to a degree, but it would be ideal to have the good bugs come in and keep the bad ones out. I could use a wide hole netting (1 cm - 1 inch wide holes) to keep birds out, but then I still have a slug problem.

Any ideas or experience on this?

[imafan26]

The bird netting won't stop pollinators from gettting in. Slugs and snails are difficult to stop. If you don't have a problem with them now, you can exclude them with a barrier of copper tape, but you have to make sure the tape is not bridged. Sluggo every two weeks keeps them in control, but you have to be consistent. Three weeks later the numbers start rising again.

[applestar]

Yep. I think you need to think separate strategies for berry-eating birds and for slugs. Insect netting is not what you want for strawberry protection.

I haven't had much success with barriers for slugs -- better to be vigilant, hand pick, use traps, and baited poisons if necessary. But in my garden, pill bugs and sow bugs are more of a problem with strawberries than slugs.