Garden

[nanapat]

Help we live in Maine. More than half our yard is dug up by these critters.

Anyone have any helpful ideas?

[JustJazzmom]

Try pouring castor oil into the entrance & exit holes.

They eat grubs which is a good thing. Contact your local Extension Service to ask what they recommend.

[Tribesters]

@nanapat

I live in NY & am having the same problem. They’re everywhere! Last year we asked our landscaper about it & he suggested some poison mole worms. They were expensive & we dropped them in the holes. Supposedly they were supposed to carry it underground & kill all the moles. It didn’t work. I’ll be watching to see if anyone else has any ideas.

[shaggygirl]

I hate those little buggers. I have valves about a foot down into the ground for my sprinkler sections. They're in circular boxes w/lids but the bottoms are open. Little buggers were tunneling and filling up the boxes w/dirt so I couldn't get to the valves. Plus making tunnels all over the side of the house and the front. Even had dirt piles out front on the sidewalk where the grass met the cement. This was in the spring. Had a professional come and he placed traps. $150 to come place them then $75 for each mole caught. He'd come every 3 or 4 days to check them over a period of a few weeks. Wound up costing me some cash but it took care of them EXCEPT I had to go way in the back of the yard last week and fooey fooey I saw a tunnel and pile back there now. As the weeks went on a few neighbors would ask "hey did you have a mole guy come?" and proceed to tell me they were driving them batty too. And here I was thinking I was the only one on my street....cause that's just the way my luck usually runs.

By the way, did you know they can tunnel about 15 feet per hour?

[fthunt]

I've seen this question on here in the past - - so my suggestion will get a yea or nay again - - but it's about the only thing that works.  Pouring stuff down hole - mole just moves 10 ft away to another hole.  The electronic/battery horn (8 - 9 inches long) are stuck in the ground or one of his holes and it beeps - wa - wa -ever so often.  It's too cold for you to sit out on the porch now - so it won't bother you or neighbors.  I was told just today by my apartment complex manager that we're loaded with moles this year - haven't had them in years - so he dug out the horns but didn't have enough batteries.  He's going shopping.  The wa - wa sound drives the moles nuts. If you try these - buy enough to space them all across your infested area - one or two won't do the job.  Years ago I bought 12 for my apartment's 3 acre lawn - and they worked!   Normal lawn - I'd get six.

[drizzellla]

Our backyard has had all kinds of critters. We had groundhogs, skunks, raccoons, opossums, rabbits, moles and mice. 

The groundhogs, skunks, racoons and opossums have moved on. Now our backyard has been overtaken by moles. Our dog used to run and have a good time in the backyard. Now he won't even go in the backyard. The yard is filled with holes and he has on occasion got his paws in one of the holes. 

I have no idea how to get rid of them. I guess once they have made holes all over our backyard they will move on.

[FranandZoe]

Use Milky Spore - a grub control powder.  It worked for us.  And it lasts about 7years before you have to apply it again.  

[JustJazzmom]

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@FranandZoewrote:

Use Milky Spore - a grub control powder.  It worked for us.  And it lasts about 7years before you have to apply it again.  

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But only if you are in hardiness zone 8 and up is it effective. Warmer soil temps have more effectiveness to get rid of only the Japanese Beetle grubs, not the other beetle grubs.

[pattypeep]

@nanapat  Everyone in our area has had a big problem this year as well. There is a brand of poison pellets that sells at our hardware store that I've used off and on for years as needed. The stuff is in our shed, so I will look after day break for the name. Here's the kicker. You must find a "run". It's not easy. I use a small stick and poke around until I find less resistance. Then I use my bulb planter to dig down. The key is to not let them feel the air coming in after you are done. After finding the run (it's about 1.5" in diameter and goes pretty much horizontally) pour in pellets per label instruction. This is important: lay something flat across where you dug so as to not disturb the area you have just opened up . Use something to weight down the board or whatever you use. I did a treatment about two weeks ago and no fresh holes. I read on Nextdoor. com that someone hired a professional and they charge $75 per mole caught. What? We would have to get a second mortgage.

PS: I battled these critters for 15 years when I lived next to a greenbelt. Through those years, I  tried everything from the smoke bombs, glass, mothballs, cat hair, dog hair, everything I had heard about. Nadda.

[Fressa]

I just recently developed this problem. We are surrounded by woods and have other "critter" situations to handle. This one was new. I have GSD's so I knew I had to act fast. I purchased a solar sonic pest sensor. It sends out an intermittent pulse to drive them away. It works. I also purchased these battery operated ground stakes for the back patio and they worked as well. They do send out a soft chirp but nothing annoying. I have these "critteres in the front and back so I tried the two types of devices that I could find. This
 season I'm going to purchase another solar sonic sensor because I prefer how that one works.