Moles in Your Garden?

July 24, 2014

Moles are ground–dwelling carnivores that prefer to eat insects instead of your garden plants. However, their underground tunnels can ruin your garden and lawn and make an easy access to your plants for other rodents.

How to Identify Moles in your Garden:  Check your soil and lawn for their tunnels. They will look like raised swellings in your yard. They prefer moist, loamy soil and are most active in the early morning or evening in the spring or fall; they also come out after a warm rain.

How to get Rid of Moles

• Moles love to feast on lawn grubs, so try spraying your lawns with milky spore disease or beneficial nematodes to get rid of the grubs.
• Moles are carnirvores that make themselves at home in lawns rich in grubs and insects. When their food is seasoned with castor oil, they will go elsewhere for meals. (Wouldn’t you?) Mix up a spray of 3 parts castor oil to 1 part dish detergent; use 4 tablespoons of this concoction in a gallon of water, and soak the tunnels and the entrances.
• Check out your soil for the presence of pests; if you have a lot of moles, you probably have an oversupply of grubs and bugs.
• Dip an ear of corn in roofing tar and place it in one of their tunnels. Moles hate the smell of tar and you’ll block their escape.
• Try sprinkling powdered red pepper in their tunnel entrances.
• If you want to protect specific plants, dig a 2– to 3–foot hole and line the sides and bottom of the hole with wire mesh. Fill the hole with soil and plant.

Trapping Moles

• If you have a persistent mole problem, the best solution is trapping. Frankly, this is often the only way to eliminate moles. Set one or two scissors-type traps in active runs. You can use a straightened wire coat hanger to find the long runs; the wire will penetrate the soil easily. After you set the trap, cover it with a board or turf to exclude daylight.  Over time, you’ll reduce the mole population. Be persistent!