How do YOU get rid of moles?

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Does anyone have a good recipe for keeping moles away from the garden? I don't want to use poison, would like to keep it safe and organic. - Same question for slugs. - Thanks

-- Kathy (jubilant@ncweb.com), May 13, 2000

Answers

I have read --on this forum--that "DE" will stop slugs. Have you tried "mole traps" for the intruders? They are not so "humann" but they are effective !

-- Joel Rosen (Joel681@webtv.net), May 13, 2000.

Pop a few automotive road flares into the holes, I know its not organic and and the gas produced is poisonous but after the moles are dead the gas disapates(sp?) and there are no long lasting affects, (other than your moles/groundhogs/etc being dead).

There are millions of the blasted things in yards and fields where Im from in western Oregon, they are constant pain in the keister and will destroy gardens and crops in no time flat if left alone....

-- Dave (AK) (transmach@hotmail.com), May 13, 2000.


Jucie Fruit gum placed in their runs works. THey like the smell and eat it but they can't handle the gum.....no more moles

-- Grant Eversoll (thegrange@earthlink.net), May 13, 2000.

Kathy, I dig into their mounds and set traps, then use Juicy Fruit gum for a lure. Hoping that one of the two will get them.

-- Terrell (terrell@tanet.net), May 13, 2000.

Dave, we lived in western Wash so I know what you mean! Hubby had spent hours of laber getting our yard in shape. All the activity aparently attracted more than we usually had. He got so mad he sat near active holes in a lawn chair with a shotgun pointed down into the hole and waited....

The first time he just happened to be standing there with some small, sharp (knife like) garden tool when he saw activity. He started hacking away at the hole hoping to stab it! Hence the above!

It's kinda funny now, but then...ugh..I thought Iwould die of embarressment!!!!

-- Novina West (lamb@stellarnet.com), May 13, 2000.



The other day at the store I saw That they are selling Castor Oil to that is sprayed on the ground to get rid of moles. I am going to try this today around my apple trees.

-- Rich (pntbeldyk@wirefire.com), May 13, 2000.

Moles, an old trick is to poke kids' pinwheels in the ground. The vibrations from the pinwheels are supposed to upset the moles and send them on their way. Also to bury glass pop bottles next to their tunnels, the woo-woo from the wind blowing across the tops of the bottles is also supposed to make them unhappy. I don't know if plastic pop bottles would work.

Slugs, put shallow saucers of beer in sheltered locations as near the slugs as possible (they don't move very fast or far). Every morning dispose of the drunk slugs. This works for most people, but I have heard of a few people who had teetotlar slugs. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), May 13, 2000.


Our cats do a pretty fair job judging from the amount of dead moles they try to "share" with us by leaving the carcases on the front porch!

-- Jason (AJAMA5@netscape.net), May 13, 2000.

I'm with Jason. Our barn cats do a pretty good job of catching the suckers. Apparently moles taste worse than a kiss from Hillary, so the cats won't eat them, just bring them by and wait for praise. GL!

-- Brad (homefixer@mix-net.net), May 13, 2000.

I have to vote for the cats again ! Mine do eat there heads , yuk!

-- Patty Gamble (fodfarms@slic.com), May 14, 2000.


Yup, cats are just the thing for moles. I wouldn't know we had any if it weren't for the little 'offerings' I get all of the time. For slugs, I understand that they like beer. You can sink a pot-pie pan into the dirt, fill it up with the local special (slugs are cheap dates), and make a lid for it with a larger, inverted pie pan and some long nails, leaving about a 1/4 to 1/3 inch gap around the edge. The upper pan will keep the rain and birds out of the beer. Change it out when it gets gross.

-- Connie (Connie@lunehaven.com), May 15, 2000.

We keep mole traps set up all around. But they came into the yard section my cocker spaniel stays in. I called my uncle on the mountain and asked what he would do. He said poke a good hole in the mound and pour in one cup of ammonia. I followed them around for a few days doing this and they left the yard. I had one back in this year and started right away and so far so good. I have tried moth balls and stuff but it didn't work at all for us. The traps are good in the fields. I am going to have a talk with my cats because I don't think they know they are supposed to get anything but mice and small birds.

-- Susie*Ks (goodartfarm@msn.com), May 15, 2000.

I've heard that moles follow the slugs/grubs...what you need to do is mix a half-water, half-pee solution (hey, it's organic!) and sprinkle it over the area you're concerned about...it won't kill anything but it will annoy the grubs and they'll move on...and the moles go with 'em! Otherwise kitties are the way to go...B

-- Betsy (sassyweitzel@yahoo.com), May 15, 2000.

My Dad always sat out small pans of carbonated (like coke) drinks. We always used it in the milk barn too---as the mice--& moles & slugs drink the carbonated drink--& they can't burb & they die! Probably beer works the same way! But, we always used what ever was the cheapest--& you have to dump it when it goes flat & rebate it with fresh! We also used the moth balls in the moles track--& it worked for us! Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda (sgbruce@birch.net), May 16, 2000.

Creosote - pour a cupful onto each mole hill every 24 hours, seems to work, they probably hate the smell!

-- ann aveyard (ann.aveyard@virgin.net), August 05, 2001.


No, I take that back, creosote does not work! Neither do windmills, sonic mole removers, pickled onions and other such home remedies. We have even tried traps and they just burrow around, or underneath them. The only way we have manged to get them is to wait until they are actually building a mole hill, as they come to the top get a spade in and dig them out! This has worked twice for us.

-- ann aveyard (ann.aveyard@virgin.net), September 08, 2001.

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