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How to Prevent Moles & Voles
How to Prevent Moles & Voles. Moles and voles have similar names and appearance and they both damage yards in their different ways. Moles dig in the soil and feed on worms, insects and grubs. Most moles don't eat plants, but sometimes damage plants through tunneling activities. Voles eat bark, green plants and seeds. Preventing moles and voles from...
Moles and voles have similar names and appearance and they both damage yards in their different ways. Moles dig in the soil and feed on worms, insects and grubs. Most moles don't eat plants, but sometimes damage plants through tunneling activities. Voles eat bark, green plants and seeds. Preventing moles and voles from entering your yard involves removing their food sources or making these food sources inaccessible. Once they appear in your yard, traps can effectively control these pests.
Things You'll Need
Gravel or cinder
Commercial plastic tree guards, chicken wire or mesh
Lawn mower
Denatonium benzoate spray
Mouse snap traps
Remove all possible food sources to moles and voles in your garden at the end of the growing season. Store seeds and bird feed in metal or glass containers that rodents can't access. Remove dead plant materials.
Remove mulch in winter to let the soil freeze. Unfrozen soil provides an ideal environment for moles and voles to access the soil. If you want to lay mulch on perennial plants, wait until the soil freezes to do so.
Place a gravel or cinder barrier around your garden plots to protect your plants from voles. The barrier should reach a height of 18-24 inches above the ground, a depth of 6-8 inches below the ground and a width of 1 foot or more. Sharp cinder particles prevent voles from burrowing into the soil to search for plants to eat.
Wrap commercial plastic tree guards, chicken wire or mesh around the bases of trees extending about 6-8 inches into the soil. This prevents voles from eating the bark of trees.
Mow the lawn regularly to maintain the recommended height for the particular type of turfgrass you grow. Remove grass thatch after mowing. Also remove weeds that grow in your lawn. These practices reduce the food source of meadow voles.
Spray denatonium benzoate on plant surfaces to add an unpleasant taste to them, deterring voles from eating them. Don't spray it on edible plant materials.
Place mouse snap traps with peanut butter or bacon baits at tunnel openings and main runways once you see moles and voles in your yard.
