By Judy from Riverside, CA
Another solution is to dig into the mound and put cat poop from the litter box into the mound as best you can. Cover the poop, congratulate yourself that while both solutions work, it is also a little funny to explain to others.
By Vicki from Roseburg, OR
When you start noticing mole hills or gopher runs in your yard, just get some Wrigleys Juicy Fruit gum. You chew it just until it is soft and the flavor is starting to come out. Then you poke a hole in the hill or run and drop the gum down into it and cover it up. The moles or gophers are attracted to the scent of fruit, but, when they eat it, they can't digest the gum and it kills them. The only problem I have ever had is that my dog likes the gum and will dig it up and eat it. So, I try to put it in areas he can't reach.
By Nightsong
My yard is full of gopher mountians and I don't know what to do about it. Does anyone know of a safe frugal way to elminate them from my yard?
Thanks for your help,
Rhonda
By wolfbytez
08/26/2009
I put moth balls in Styrofoam cups with holes poked in the bottom, covered the cups with foil & set in each hole, it worked. To keep them from tunneling under your plants in the garden try putting down a large piece of "hardware cloth"...it's like heavy metal screening; just dig down into the garden before planting & lay it down, the plants roots can grow thru it but the gophers can't pull the plants down and can't tunnel thru it.
What kind of plant roots do gophers hate to eat? I have gophers and no matter what I do I can't get rid of them. I've tried everything.
By Dianne T. from Castaic, CA
We have a pesty gopher in our garden. Does anyone know how to get rid of gophers? Thanks.
By Michael from San Bruno, CA
By Mary C.
09/11/2010
Since I live in your area I listen to Bob Tanum on Sunday morning on KSFO. He is a gardner. He recomends dry ice. Seems to be successful.You can find it in some grocery store or liquor stores.
I have a very persistent gopher in my yard. I tried crushed mothballs in the hole he made, and thought it had done the job, but he's back. Any suggestions on how to get rid of him without killing him?
Jean from Michigan
Roger Cook replies: "Look on the bright side at least you won't have to aerate your lawn this year. Seriously, though, gophers are wily, destructive pests that throw up big mounds of earth willy-nilly across the landscape and destroy gardens and crops. Here's a quick overview of the remedies for these rodents, but check with your local extension service on specifics that suit your area.
First of all, stuffing things down a gopher hole, including hair or those so-called sonic repellents, just doesn't work. (Neither does dynamite, as Bill Murray proved in the movie Caddyshack.) I recommend box traps, which are the simplest and easiest type of gopher trap to use. You plant them in a main tunnel, which lies about 6 to 12 inches below the surface. (Find it by probing the ground around a mound on the side where you see a plug of fresh earth.) Then, following the illustrated directions below, dig down and set two traps with their open ends facing opposite directions into the tunnel. No bait is needed, but be sure to wear gloves when setting the traps. You don't want your scent to scare them away.
If you prefer not to trap, stay away from the poisons that contain strychnine. A poisoned gopher eaten by a cat, dog, or fox will poison that animal as well. Safer poisons use a bait laced with anticoagulants; internal bleeding kills the gopher (painlessly, I'm told) without endangering other animals. Just be sure to follow instructions for its safe use and disposal.
I've read that gophers can't stand the smell of castor oil (can't say I blame them) and that spraying a diluted mix on the ground is enough to make them skedaddle. There's also some evidence that gophers don't like mulch, so you could try mulching a buffer area around plantings. Or you could encourage predators to come feast on your rich gopher supply. Installing owl boxes in a nearby woods might be a good start." (05/10/2006)
By Lynda
By Vic
By Kaytee
By Yucaipa Valley
Gophers are demolishing my yard. They are eating my roses, iris, and other plants and leaving mounds of dirt everywhere. I've been putting poison in the holes. I tried traps, but the gopher pushed dirt onto it which set it off.
Hardiness Zone: 10a
By abacal4 from Vista, CA
By grannygirl
Here is an eco-friendly and humane way to reduce the ground rodents like gophers from your sensitive gardening areas. If you have healthy cats (rodent predators) and a litter box or other source of feces, spoon the litter with feces and urine (about a half a cup) down the open gopher holes and add enough water to be sure it reaches the lower levels of the tunnels. You can open closed holes with a tool. You don't want to waste water or to have it go into your ground water if you are on a well or close to a water source. Be sure you use eco-friendly litter with no chemicals or perfumes.
This does not kill the rodents but they will move away from that section of your yard. Do not use feces in your food garden, only lawn/yard and flower beds. Ground rodents are natural tillers of the soil so they do have a positive side for some gardeners and certainly for the earth. Maybe they can be herded into the areas that you want tilled!
By Lin from Atascadero, CA
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Getting Rid of Gophers