28 June, 2023

HOLEy- MOLEy!!

Last year we extended the perennial garden to increase the potential for additional plants needing more sun exposure. The "new" section was mulched and this spring I added Peonies and some groups of Lily bulbs. The Peonies were doing great (I had planted four) and then, all of a sudden ,one was dying- and FAST! I tried to baby it, dug it up to replant it and then discovered that the roots were gone! It was right about this time that the mounds began appearing. Oh, no; MOLES, my heart sank to my feet. Since then I've been tamping down the underground trails daily with a hoe. They dug new routes. I've opened up some of the tunnels and dropped in something to keep them from coming back. More raised areas appeared. Yesterday I ordered some solar-powered ultrasonic stakes that are supposed to repel them (along with any chipmunks, voles, snakes and gophers! 😬) with regularly occurring low-frequency pulses which, supposedly, they can't tolerate. Wish me luck! If anyone has any better remedies please let me know. It's a battlefield out there right now. 
1,2,3,4... I declare WAR!

Life is Good!
(and even better without root-eating rodents)!
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9 comments:

cityquilter grace said...

How awful! I've heard moth balls get rid of chipmunks....

June 28, 2023 4:36 PM
from Lois and BJ said...

When my hostas were damaged by voles I mixed chicken grit into the soil. Voles don’t like crunchy snacks and I doubt the moles would like it either. Your moles are mainly after grubs. The only way I know to get rid of moles is to kill the grubs.

June 29, 2023 12:26 AM
Suzanne said...

We are having the same problem in our gardens in Kalamazoo. A neighbor told us they had success with granulated caster oil. We applied it over the 3-day recommended period and are hoping this works. I would love to hear if the solar powered ultrasonic stakes work- please let us know!

June 29, 2023 7:45 AM
Nana said...

We had moles in our front yard. We bought battery powered sticks which must be very similar to your solar powered ones. No more moles!!!! And that was 3 years ago. The batteries last for the whole season. We take them in for the winter (we're in Iowa) and back out they go in early spring with new batteries.

June 29, 2023 8:33 AM
Ramona said...

Moles and Voles! UGH!! Several years ago they invaded my garden and I was so frustrated. I'll be interested to hear how your ultrasonic stakes work. I haven't seen them in my current yard, but they do seem to appear out of nowhere.

June 29, 2023 5:26 PM
Quiltdivajulie said...

For flowers and plants (not vegetables) we use a product named Merit Insectide Granules from Do It Your Own Pest Control (online - excellent company to deal with). Merit takes care of the grubs, etc. which means the moles go elsewhere for food. Apply at least 20 feet out from the infected area - takes a couple of weeks to activate but it does work (apply twice a year). We had so many problems when we moved here but no longer!

June 30, 2023 9:42 AM
Sherrill said...

Try Mole Scram if the gadgets don't work..(I didn't have much luck with them). Moles are YUCK!

July 02, 2023 6:32 PM
AnnieO said...

What a battle zone! Best of luck protecting what is left. We have a lot of gophers in our area but I have never seen a mole. Of course, I don't grow any special tasty flowers or food...

July 04, 2023 1:26 AM
Tanya said...

Oh dear... Moles... I guess we have them too but our garden isn't so beautiful or productive to cause us much problem. I hope the solar powered sticks work!

July 17, 2023 8:58 PM

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