It may surprise you to find out you can go hunting in your own yard. If you know how to catch a mole, you can have the thrill and rid your garden of a pest, too. If you don't want to be so 'hands on', there are chemicals you can use, or traps, or professional animal control services. All this information can be found online.
One way to catch the critter alive is a bit labor intensive, but it is said to work. You dig a hole through and under a tunnel you are sure is still in use, put a deep bucket in the hole, restore the tunnel to a usable condition, and cover the hole with a board so all is dark. Then you wait. The mole, being a creature of habit, runs through its tunnel and falls into the bucket. An easier way is to shove a spade into a tunnel in which you see movement and try to throw the mole out into the air.
You need to think about what to do with a live mole. It's against the rules to evict a wild animal from its habitat in many areas. Check local animal control regulations to see if you can re-home moles.
Catch and release folks should read up on what moles like before letting them go. They like lawns, so letting them go in deep woods is not humane. You don't want to release them on a neighbor's property, either. If you have a part of your garden which is not on display, you could release your captive there and hope it stays away from your lawn.
If you aren't worried about saving the critters, there are ways to kill them once and for all. People use chemical poisons that are dropped in the tunnels. Some of these, grain based ones especially, don't work well, since moles eat mainly insects or vegetation. Insecticides that kill grubs, the mole's main food, can help keep these pests away.
There are also traps that seem a little drastic but are probably no worse than the snap mousetraps homeowners use for indoor pests. They need to be set carefully, and you need to make sure pets or children won't encounter them. You set the traps in the tunnels; although the moles may be smart enough to avoid them, this method seems to be one that actually works.
Other things to do include putting Juicy Fruit gum or mothballs in the tunnels. The reviews are not great. You can stick a hose into a molehill and flood the breeding chamber below. Any moles flushed out will need to be caught and - whatever. Poison gas released into the tunnels is another solution. People have even tried explosives. Before trying the last method, you might want to seek professional help. Ask for a guarantee; moles are tricky.
Moles eat grubs, which is why they like your lawn. However, they are also ridding your garden of grubs, which hatch into Japanese Beetles and other nasty pests. Some tunnels might only mean that moles are traveling thorough, not setting up their nursery. Rolling your lawn might compact the earth enough to make the animals stay away. You may be able to co-exist with these little creatures.
One way to catch the critter alive is a bit labor intensive, but it is said to work. You dig a hole through and under a tunnel you are sure is still in use, put a deep bucket in the hole, restore the tunnel to a usable condition, and cover the hole with a board so all is dark. Then you wait. The mole, being a creature of habit, runs through its tunnel and falls into the bucket. An easier way is to shove a spade into a tunnel in which you see movement and try to throw the mole out into the air.
You need to think about what to do with a live mole. It's against the rules to evict a wild animal from its habitat in many areas. Check local animal control regulations to see if you can re-home moles.
Catch and release folks should read up on what moles like before letting them go. They like lawns, so letting them go in deep woods is not humane. You don't want to release them on a neighbor's property, either. If you have a part of your garden which is not on display, you could release your captive there and hope it stays away from your lawn.
If you aren't worried about saving the critters, there are ways to kill them once and for all. People use chemical poisons that are dropped in the tunnels. Some of these, grain based ones especially, don't work well, since moles eat mainly insects or vegetation. Insecticides that kill grubs, the mole's main food, can help keep these pests away.
There are also traps that seem a little drastic but are probably no worse than the snap mousetraps homeowners use for indoor pests. They need to be set carefully, and you need to make sure pets or children won't encounter them. You set the traps in the tunnels; although the moles may be smart enough to avoid them, this method seems to be one that actually works.
Other things to do include putting Juicy Fruit gum or mothballs in the tunnels. The reviews are not great. You can stick a hose into a molehill and flood the breeding chamber below. Any moles flushed out will need to be caught and - whatever. Poison gas released into the tunnels is another solution. People have even tried explosives. Before trying the last method, you might want to seek professional help. Ask for a guarantee; moles are tricky.
Moles eat grubs, which is why they like your lawn. However, they are also ridding your garden of grubs, which hatch into Japanese Beetles and other nasty pests. Some tunnels might only mean that moles are traveling thorough, not setting up their nursery. Rolling your lawn might compact the earth enough to make the animals stay away. You may be able to co-exist with these little creatures.
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You can get advice on how to catch a mole and more info about the best mole traps at http://www.traplineproducts.com/trapinstructions.html right now.
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