The Application of Microwave Power to the Control of Slugs in Agriculture

The question of whether high-power microwave radiation applied to the soil surface would afford a viable means of eliminating the slug population is addressed. In a co-operative venture, undertaken by agricultural biologists and microwave engineers, studies of the following have been undertaken: (a) the distribution of slugs in soils, (b) the susceptibiity of slugs to heating by microwave radiation, (c) the dielectric properties of a range of soil types, (d) the composition of slugs' bodies with reference to the absorption of microwave power, both in air and in various soil types. (e) the absorption properties of slugs' eggs. The above data, derived largely from experiments, is used in computer modelling of the. heating and temperature rise induced in slugs as a function of their depth in the soil and the water content of the soil. This model is used to assess the power levels and exposure times required to kill the slugs.