In this section:
Stubble Management
Snails aestivate over summer on any object they can find above the soil 
surface including the upright stalks of stubble and weeds, fence posts and even tree trunks. They do this to avoid the searing heat of the soil surface.
The objective of stubble management is to knock snails off of upright stalks and onto the hot soil surface. The snails then have to seek out new upright stalks to aestivate on and as they travel across the hot ground they burn-up food reserves. The heat also causes snails to produce mucus which leads to water loss. If this loss is severe the snails will die of desiccation.
Conical snails climb upright stalks during warm weather but also can be found resting under the shade of rocks and vegetation including summer weeds.
Successful management of Conical snails must also involve disturbing populations underneath rocks and controlling summer weeds that act as a shelter during hot weather.
Conical snails hide under rocks over summer
Stubble management practices commonly used for snail control
Slashing stubble
Slashing flicks snails to the ground, removes all tall stubble and effectively crushes some snails.
This is a relatively slow method due to the narrow width covered at each pass. In stony paddocks care must be taken to avoid sparking a fire.
Trials have shown slashing can cause 50-90% mortality of snails.
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| Photo Courtesy: Michael Richards | Photo courtesy: Bill Long |
Cabling
Cabling is extremely fast, about 120 hectares can be covered by a 150m cable in one hour. In regions with cooler summer temperatures (eg. lower Yorke Peninsula) repeated cabling of paddocks is effective as snails are repeatedly dislodged and forced to move over hot ground, thereby suffering added stress due to dehydration.
Cabling can lead to reductions of snail numbers of up to 70% after one pass. Cabling is rather more aggressive then Rolling and results in snails being knocked from their resting sites, as well as laying much of the stubble flat. Rocks are also turned over by cabling, exposing conical snails to heat. Cabling stony paddocks immediately prior to burning exposes more snails to the fire resulting in a better kill.
Grazing
Grazing animals knock snails from stubble and may also trample or accidentally consume them whilst grazing. Generally grazing is considered less effective then rolling, slashing or cabling but can still be considered in an integrated snail management program.
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Summer Weed Control
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Snail "kebabs" found on summer weeds
