What Can I Plant in the Fall?
What should you do?
In today’s world, there is a variety of approaches to dealing with pests in your yard. With all of the different options and steps involving the removal of the pests, it is all dependent on how involved you want to get and what you are willing to do. Moles, for example, are one of the pests suitable for harming your yard or garden by digging away with their large paws.
Step 1-Do a Little Research
- Before you begin battling for the integrity of your front lawn, you should take a look at your local laws. Some states may have anti-trapping laws that could change how you deal with your pest’s. You should know what you can and cannot do. After that, you can decide what will be the best option in your case.
Step 2-Pick your Poison
- Now that you know a bit more about what is acceptable in your home state you have to decide:
Do you want to kill the moles?
If you answered YES:
- But I don’t want to do it myself.
Potential Solution: You could look into hiring a professional. Not sure if this is cost effective? Here is a source for wildlife removal in the United States that can help you begin pricing things out.
- But I am unsure of what could be the best way to do it.
Potential Solution: To save on time, we are only going to recommend two different methods.
Conventional Method – Poisoned Worms:
A Moles main food source include earth worms. The brands that work the best are typically ones that are as realistic as possible to trick a mole into eating them.
When searching for the right poison for your situation, pay close attention to the back of the box. Follow the instructions on the back when placing the worms. When examining the back of the box, also look for the chemicals used in the poison. The most commonly used toxin in mole poisons is called Bromethalin. This poison can also be harmful to household pets such as cats and dogs. This means that you should be aware how much Bromethalin is in your chosen poison. Click here if you want to know more about the effects of Bromethalin and how different dosages could affect your cat or dog.
Another thing to keep in mind when you are trying to decide whether or not you want to use poison is where you are placing the worms. Let’s say you have a vegetable garden that is under attack by the moles, you do not want to contaminate anything in that area that you might ingest so you may have to look for a trapping alternative to do instead.
Unconventional Method – Train your Dog:
Of course, we are not suggesting that you go out and adopt a dog to handle your mole problems. If you already have one and don’t want to risk him ingesting poison or spend money on trapping, training may be a good alternative for you.
Some dogs may already be on the hunt for moles in your yard. You may be able to help your dog out by trapping moles in a section of clearly outlined tunnels. This can be tricky, but if you see the dirt moving while doing yard work, it is a sign that there is a mole there. You can quickly stick a shovel down either side of the spot where the mole is moving.
If you aren’t seeing any movement in your dirt mounds, you may also be able to force the mole to rebuild their tunnels. Walking along the tunnel lines and stomping the dirt back into the ground will force them to either re-build or abandon that town and start a new line.
This is one suggestion on how to help your dog identify moles, but there are many different training methods on how to train them even if they aren’t necessarily a breed of dog that is prone to digging for rodents.
If you answered NO:
- If you do not want to or are unwilling to kill your moles but you still want to get rid of them, you have other solutions. These solutions could be more difficult to pull off and may take a bit more time to complete.
Live Trapping & Relocation
As previously mentioned, we described how you could potentially trap a mole in a tunnel by omitting their exit with shovels. This is a form of live trapping, but there are other easier methods that include no lethal cages and just requires you to check up on them periodically. After the trap is full, you can bring the mole somewhere and release it back into the wild where they belong.
Step 3-Repair the Damage
Barring extreme circumstances, the repair to your yard and garden after a mole attack can be very minimal. Repairs are also determined by the level of care you want to provide. It should also be a lot faster and easier than trying to remove the moles.
Fixing the Area
First, you should rake over the affected area as it will help disperse the piled soil into the surrounding lawn. This not only removes the hills created by the moles, but it also makes their tunnels less accommodating because you will be cutting off any ventilation source they have.
You will also want to compact and hose down the soil with a lawn roller, or a dirt tamper. This will flatten out the areas that were damaged by the moles. Then, level out those spots with some sort of topsoil. Hosing the soil will add extra weight that helps with compression. It also prevents air pockets from drying out the roots of your grass.
Repellents
Eucalyptus or Mint Oil
Either of these oils are safe to use and are natural. Eucalyptus and Mint have strong scents which moles do not favor. Using a cotton ball, soak that in the oil, find a hole, and drop it in there. Do not use your hands as there may be a mole, but instead use a stick, and then cover the holes.
Castor Oil and Water
This is a combination that has been proven to work. Using three parts water and one part castor oil in a container are all the requirements. Just like the other repellents mentioned, you must first find a hole, but instead, you just pour the mixture in.
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