turfgrass

moles

moles

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dhull805@charternet – posted 16 July 2004 14:36

Help! I have never had moles before. How do I get rid of them? Kill the lawn bugs? Traps? They are slowly killing my lawn.

ted – posted 16 July 2004 17:30

just use traps- forget all the farmers tales about exlax, castor oil etc. you can kill the insects, but the moles will continue to look for food. good news is that there’s only 1 per acre, so if you can trap him effectively, you’ll be done with the problem. moles really don’t do that much damage- you can roll the lawn afterward without too much problem.

rgjack – posted 16 July 2004 22:26

One per acre? Maybe at any one instant. I thought I had mole problems but didn’t realize just how serious… the first year I trapped 34 moles… the second year 68 moles – sometimes catching two or three a day. One per acre, you say? Not in central Florida… and I only have a 3/4 acre residential property.

Agree to use of traps… the mole bait, chewing gum, castor oil, human hair, exlax, smoke bombs, drowning, hot pepper sauce, etc DO NOT WORK !!! I’ve tried them. The best trap is the Victor Out O’ Sight Mole Trap(scissors type) and next best is the Nash Choker Loop Mole Trap. The Duffus Mole Trap and The English Scissor Trap are not effective at all. BTW, I was using 8 traps the last year of trapping.

The good news for me was there were absolutely no moles the third year – none. This year, which is the fourth year… THEY’RE BACK… eight so far. In fact, trapped two the same day last week in traps set less than 15 feet apart.

Happy trapping – and no, I have no vested interest in any mole trapping products.

cohiba – posted 17 July 2004 09:42

I hate moles!Two things that have worked for me: one preventatively the other curative. Preventatively I like to use Castor plants. It’s a very large leafed annual that stands about 6-7 feet tall in most soils. Requires full sun. The beans are extremely poisionous. Ricin is made from the beans. Moles hate these plants. I usually have people plant a few of (2-3 per acre)these around the perimeter of the property and at the edges of wood lines. Curatively I use a pitch fork and two shovels. First stomp down the tunnels. Second sit still and wait for the tunnels to move back up. When the moles starts moving again put a shovel in front of him and a shovel behind him, about 6-8 feet apart, in his tunnel. Next comes the hard part: Pitch fork the tunnel until you get him. You will know when. This method works well.

Happy hunting…………

ted – posted 17 July 2004 14:17

yeah, traps are the method. cohiba is describing the old tried and true formula- are you sure we’re talking about moles and not voles? moles tend to be very territorial!

rgjack – posted 25 July 2004 22:43

>>…not voles? moles tend to be very territorial! <<

You had me there so I had to look up what a vole was since I’d never seen one. Here’s part of what I found:

Endangered Status The Florida Salt Marsh Vole, a subspecies of the Meadow Vole, is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as endangered in Florida, where it is found in only one location, at Waccasassa Bay in Levy County. This single population, separated from the rest of the species after the last ice age, is very small, and extremely vulnerable to complete extinction. Climatic changes over time, and the resultant change in vegetation, are thought to have shrunk its range to its current extent. Nowadays storms, flooding, and human alteration to its habitat are the greatest threats facing it.

If I knew how, “on the U.S. Endangered Species List” would have been highlighted. To answer your question more directly – very certain the varmits were moles. Oh, BTW, now trapped nine so far this year.

jholler – posted 13 August 2004 03:26

I was fortune enough to have the mole’s tunnel come near the back porch so that when I was going after the spade I was walking on concrete and not causing ground vibration. He did not know that I was coming. It only took one step to get into position. My technique is similar to cohiba. I was sitting on the back porch when the end of the tunnel run started swelling. You can see it. The spade was long and narrow. The hard part is getting the right aim. You don,t want to hit behind him. You will trap him and he will dig out of the situation. You want to hit him right in the middle of his back. Stand on the spade and rock back and forth. If you hit him, the space will not sink and when you lean foward with the spade, you will see his fur. Be sure and break his back. This sounds gruesome, but it does the job. Better that loosing all of that hard work on you lawn. I killed 2 on a 1/4 acre lot and they were gone for 2 years. This was an isolated lawn in the middle of corn fields. I was fortunate enough to be sitting still when the ground started swelling. They can sense earth vibration when people are near and will quit burrowing.

Good Luck,

Joe

[This message has been edited by jholler (edited 13 August 2004).]

Liz – posted 27 August 2004 11:11

My mole control method works pretty well. I got a cat.

info@medcopk.com – posted 02 February 2006 09:58

Dera sir,We are manufacturer of Mole trapper etc please send us your complete address so i shall send you few samples for quality approval and make business with your company.Thanking you and awaiting your reply soon.Kindest regardIkram

kristian – posted 27 February 2006 14:20

i worked hard on my lawns last year to find this year moles are popping up every where.

i was woundering what is the best way to get rid of them. i have about 4 acres they see to be every where i turn.

please help me some one any suggestions will help

many thanks kristian

tdkx2 – posted 08 July 2006 00:01

Talpirid. When moles threatend my golf greens and tees, I used this product and it worked. End of story. End of discussion on the matter of how to kill moles. $50 for twenty bait worms.

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