Welcome Noah.
I'm also in an urban garden and the snails and slugs are brutal. Mostly because there are lots of hiding spaces (walls, edging, rocks, blocks).
I do what Jay mentions.... especially the night hunting. Especially the first rainy night after a good dry spell, we'll go out in the dark with headlamps and a bucket of soapy water and pick off as many as we can. We do this maybe two or three times a year and the effects are notable-- I think the big ones we catch are the breeding stock and it makes a difference. Between these forays I may also throw out some cabbage leaves overnight and then pick them up in the morning.
Jay Angler wrote:....damp, flat boards. ... a flashlight after dark....
I haven't heard of any technique which doesn't take time and perseverance. ...
I am also dealing with am invading cat right now. The only real thing I've found has been to be outside and throw things at it-- although the damn thing still comes back! I've tried forks in the soil, leaving my dog's poo around, etc, the cat doesn't care. I try not to leave soft dirt uncovered (put hay or mulch or whatever down) if I can help it. If I really need to, I also cage areas with wire or even a beach chair or anything similar.
The threats vary over time- one year I had a lot of rats, the cat will move on eventually, one year it was very dry and I had birds eat all the leaves off my fall peas, you just never know.
I find aphids and miners vary for me according to precipitation- if there is drought, the aphids are much worse.
I think the urban garden can feel very challenging because the pest damage is so visible -- you don't have acres to look at or lots of other vegetation to distract the pests. Every year I have large grasshoppers that show up, and they can decimate my entire yard if I don't get out there with scissors, for example.
