Picture of a mole hill, common when moles are present.
Have a problem with moles in your yard or garden? Here are some tips for removing the pests from our ThriftyFun community. Post your own solutions below.
Grub Spray
If you have a co-op or tractor supply store, perhaps even a discount store would have this spray, in your area they have a spray that kills the food source (grub worms etc) of the moles. Food source gone=moles gone. I have used this spray and it really works. I have also used the mole pellets and they did not work for me. Good luck, those critters can wreak havoc in a short time.
By Celeste
More About Grubs
The moles are there because there is food for them to eat, they eat grubs. If you get rid of their food source, you'll get rid of them. Go to your local home improvement store and buy a bag of grub killer to spread on your lawn. It lasts all year. Also, moles are sensitive to noise and vibrations, so if you can stand the look, go out and buy cheap dollar store pinwheels (like the ones we had as kids which turn in the wind) and stick them in the ground at various locations where you know they tunnel. It drives them crazy. I've also used "mole peanuts", a type of tasty poison, but be careful if you have pets or kids.
By debbie
Smelly Solutions
I have never tried this, but I read somewhere to take used dirty cat litter and put it in the holes and that this will chase them away. It sounds like it would be worth a shot!
By Dianne
Plant Castor Beans
If you don't have kids or pets coming around the garden, you can get castor beans from mail order gardening supply catalogs and just plant the beans and it will keep moles, gophers and voles out of the area. The roots are poisionous to them and they won't come around them. But be sure and wear gloves and wash your hands after handling them, they are toxic to humans as well. Also Jerry Baker has some good tips on this as well. Also the castor bean plant is a great looking plant and you can save the seeds, year to year.
By Darrell
Cat To Chase Moles Away
Get a cat! They love going after the moles. My mole supply has gone way done. My neighbor loves Zoe, our cat, because she has destroyed the mole population in her yard too. Haven't seen any snakes around either. They must hide.
Use the plastic flowers that spin in the wind, the vibration scares them. I have been using them for years. You also could flood their holes with water.
You can purchase a mole trap at the hardware store that will catch your moles. It has long teeth and goes through the mole as it comes underneath, killing the darned thing. Our yard looked like a road map from all the mole runs and we got rid of every single one with the traps but the neighbors will also have to do the same or they will come back.
By Cookie
Call Extension Office
Call your local state univ. extension office, they are full of resources and will be able to help you.
Don't Use Chemicals
DO NOT use chemicals! They will poison the ground and contaminate the water table under the ground. Use natural methods to get rid of these beneficial rodents that eat grubs and other root killing insects! Think of your pets, children and the future of our ecosystem before using man made harmful chemicals.
By Louis
Water And Sonic Noise
I have killed several gophers this year by being watchful as I spend time outside. When sprayed with a hose while hiding in a crevice or getting washed out of their holes, they are momentarily stunned and moving slowly. The sonic eradicators (about 1' long, push into the ground) beep about every 30 seconds, have worked very well in my heavy clay soil in the past.
This spring, however, families of deaf gophers seem to have moved in. In the past, gophers would come through for a week or two, and then move on. This year, they are staying a little longer. Gopher pellets have helped a bit, but I cannot use it in the back yard because of my dog.
---> HUMAN HAIR: moles just HATE it! Get it at your local beauty shop!
* I had MANY, many moles in my back yard (& at least 50 or more holes) But then I got a cat... NO more moles! ---> Moles hate the smell of cats..... PLUS indoor/outdoor cats like to do their business in the soft mole-hole dirt, & this really offends the moles in a BIG way! And they leave town!
My next door neighbor paid over $200 to have a guy come & trap his moles, but I just got a cat!
*** One more GREAT idea (for those of you who don't own cats) Sprinkle crushed hot red pepper into their holes... or even better, soak crushed hot peppers (or cayenne) in rubbing alcohol overnight (you can also add garlic powder)... then pour a dab of this hot mixture into each of their holes. It WORKS!
* The Hot Pepper mixture also works great on or in garbage cans, and also on flower-beds to keep dogs & especially cats away! (no harm, it just makes them sneeze & they leave)
Drop a half stick of Wrigley's Doublemint chewing gum down each hole. I know this method is disputed here & there, but all I know is that my lawn is now mole-free!!! I do NOT use poisons on anything, so I was thrilled to find this method. Every few years or so, if we find mole holes, we just drop in more sticks of doublemint gum again, but it's a cheap & easy method that works every time for us! Give it a try.....what have you got to lose?! Good luck, Donna in southeastern Kansas
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