description
- Any gardener knows well what a nuisance slugs can be, the devastating damage they can cause and how difficult they are to control. It's the same for farmers, but on a much bigger scale -- their livelihoods depend on getting crops well established without the early grazing damage slugs cause. If they weren't controlled, slugs would cost UK farmers a whopping £100M every year. Farmers rely heavily on the use of slug pellets that contain chemicals, often spreading them as a precautionary measure. Pesticides previously used were banned because they got into drinking water or harmed beneficial insects, leaving just one now used (ferric phosphate) -- this is not sustainable and it's not good for the environment. An alternative approach is to look at the palatability of the crop. As part of a Defra-funded programme, scientists at John Innes Centre in Norwich have identified a type of wheat, that hasn't been grown for over 100 years, which may have a long-lost trait making it unpalatable to slugs. It's an exciting start, but until it's investigated further and tested in the field, we won't know for sure how it can be used, how slugs will react, or whether they'll just get over their dislike of the wheat and eat it anyway. This project will, for the first time, bring farmers directly engaged with the pre-breeding wheat research that eventually makes its way to their fields. It will explore ways to alter the actual palatability of the crop itself. Anyone can get involved in this fascinating project by collecting slugs and sending them into the lab. There, they'll be offered a selection of both modern and the long-lost wheats and their feeding habits scrutinised. That'll inform field trials with a group of Slug Sleuths - farmers closely involved in the project. They will test a selection of these wheats in their fields and monitor slug behaviour carefully. If successful, scientists may be able to pinpoint the genetics responsible and breed more resilience into today's crops used to produce our food, with less loss to troublesome slugs. Fewer chemicals spread on fields mean healthier soils and lower carbon emissions, helping us meet climate change targets. What's more, the close involvement of farmers in developing these novel technologies will ensure the cropping system of the future is resilient and abundant for many generations to come.