How To Control Moles In Lawn

How To Keep Moles Out Of Your Lawn

It’s a strange feeling when you look out and see your beautiful lawn criss-crossed by tunnel mounds. Moles make a mess of the yard. If they’ve invaded, you can trap them, and then change the environment to make your yard less attractive to them. Here are a few steps you can take to protect your lawn from this underground nuisance.

How To Get Rid Of Moles In Your Yard And Garden

Moles: while some people think they look cute, they can cause severe damage to your lawn and landscaping.

Moles construct intricate networks of tunnels and mounds in the ground and quickly kill or damage the plants, grass, and trees in your outdoor space. If you want to reclaim your yard, the only solution is to learn how to get rid of moles.

Dont worry – it is possible to figure out how to get rid of moles humanely. Here at Smiths Pest Management, our team has helped thousands of customers throughout the San Francisco Bay Area reduce mole populations and enjoy their landscaping once more.

In this post, well share our top tips. Lets dive in.

How Do You Tell If You Have Moles In Your Yard

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Here are six tell-tale signs to look out for:

Beside above, why do I suddenly have moles in my yard? The main reason that moles invade your yard is to search for food. Their primary food sources are earthworms, grubs, and lawn insects. If no food is available, they won’t find your yard attractive. You can also use mole repellents to make your yard undesirable to the furry, tunneling pests.

Also question is, what is the fastest way to get rid of moles in your yard?

There are three methods to use in ridding your lawn of moles:

What is a home remedy to get rid of moles in your yard?

Castor oil is one of the most effective home remedies to get rid of moles. Skip the moth balls, tea tree oil and cayenne pepper for pest control â they are not effective. Plant a barrier of vegetation in your yard to deter moles.

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Did You Get Rid Of Your Mole Problem

Well, thats all I have for you!

You now have everything you need to assess the situation, determine the moles, and keep them out of your yard- for good!

With patience and persistence, youll be able to drive out even the most prevalent and stubborn moles.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below and ask. Or if you have any experience with managing moles, leave some tips for others!

Also, let me know if you found this guide to be helpful? Anything, in particular, youd like to see more of?

Consider telling a friend who may also be dealing with moles! Chances are if you live in an area where theyre native, your neighbors may be facing the same problem.

Thanks for reading!

The oil works by disrupting the moles digestive tract and upsets their stomach. This forces them to direct their tunnels to a new direction or forces them to find another location.

Buy it or make it yourself

You can easily buy products with castor oil. But unfortunately, many of these mole repellents combine many other poisonous chemicals which you want to avoid.

Always go natural or organic if you can afford it, as its much safer for you, your family, your pets, and the environment.

Otherwise, you can buy pure castor oil from the store and make your DIY mole repellent at home.

This is probably the best home remedies you can use to get rid of moles from your garden. You can use castor oil as a mole repellent. And its very effective.

Castor oil repellent

Heres how to make it.

How Do Professionals Get Rid Of Moles In Your Yard

If DIY is not your style, you may want to call in a professional mole control team. Thanks to their professional tools and tactics, these teams are better equipped to effectively deal with severe mole infestations.

If getting rid of moles humanely is important to you, you can opt for no-kill methods that will drastically reduce your mole populations and restore your yard to its former glory.

Here are a few tactics our team here at Smiths Pest Management uses:

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How Do I Moles Proof My Lawn

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In this manner, what is the fastest way to get rid of moles in your yard?

There are three methods to use in ridding your lawn of moles:

One may also ask, how do you deal with moles? How to Deal with Moles and Voles

Thereof, what do moles do to your yard?

Mole DamageMoles usually feed on insect pests, grubs, and soil organisms, including beneficial ones like earthworms. Check your soil and lawn for their tunnels. They will look like raised volcano-shaped swellings in your yard. Surface tunnels or ridges also indicate mole activity.

How does Dawn dish soap get rid of moles?

Combine Dawn dish soap, castor oil and water in a bottle. Soak the areas where moles and other burrowing animals are taking over. You might not be able to get rid of them in one go. So repeat this treatment week after week until they are gone.

Fastest Way To Get Rid Of Moles

One of the worst feelings is getting up in the morning to find that your beautifully maintained garden has been made unsightly by various tunnels and mounds made by moles. These small animals mercilessly dig up the garden making it hard for you to maintain its beauty.

Moles are notorious not just for harming your gardens, lawns, and plants but also for raising several health concerns. Moles can bite you and cause infections including rabies. This is especially possible when the bite was unprovoked. Moreover, moles can spread several parasites that can harm humans and animals. These parasites include fleas, mites, and ticks that can cause various diseases to you or your pets. Because these wild animals stay underground, it can be difficult to get rid of them. You can take help from professionals who deal with pest control to get rid of them quickly and effectively.

Some of the tips that can help you get rid of moles include:

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Do Moles Carry Disease

Moles are not generally considered serious vectors of disease, but they sometimes carry parasites such as ticks and fleas, and can potentially transmit infectious diseases such as Lyme disease. Take care not to touch trapped moles with your bare hands when disposing of them. In very rare cases, moles have been known to carry rabies, but the more likely risk is from parasites.

Make Your Yard Undesirable

To help prevent mole invasions from occurring in the first place, start by making your yard unappealing to them. Kill grubs and insects. The main reason that moles invade your yard is to search for food. Their primary food sources are earthworms, grubs, and lawn insects. If no food is available, they wont find your yard attractive. To help limit the moles food supply, use products labeled to control grubs, ants, mole crickets, and other lawn insects. Dont water too much. Moles like soft, damp earth, so avoid over-watering your lawn and keep it on the dry side to limit mole and earthworm activity. Remember: Most lawns only need 1 inch of water per week from either an irrigation system or rain to stay healthy, and this will also help limit mole activity. Apply repellents. You can also use mole repellents to make your yard undesirable to the furry, tunneling pests. Tomcat® Mole & Gopher Repellent Granules or Tomcat® Mole & Gopher Repellent Ready-To-Spray are a convenient, non-lethal way to remove moles from your yard. Moles despise the smell and taste of its active ingredient, castor oil, and will relocate elsewhere. Mole repellents should be reapplied to your yard monthly while moles are active in order to stop them from reinvading your yard.

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Does Dawn Dish Soap Get Rid Of Moles

Yes, you can use Dawn dish soap to help eliminate moles from your yard. The thing to note is that you cant just use Dawn by itself. Youll need some castor oil to help the dish soap work effectively.

Just like the castor oil method I wrote about above, this method uses the same thought process.

The dish soap and castor oil will upset the moles digestive system, which happens to make them relocate naturally. This will help get rid of moles from your yard without killing them.

Another note: You dont need to Dawn dish soap. You can use any dish detergent. Dawn just happens to be a popular brand used in pest control for some reason.

How to make DIY dish soap ground mole repellent

Heres how to make your mole repellent with dish soap.

What youll need:

• Combine the dish soap, water, and castor oil into the spray bottle.

How to use it:

• Spray your soil where you suspect the moles to be. Typically, this is where the soft and loose soil is, as moles like to hang out there. Spray directly onto the soil.
• Also, spray plant roots and directly into the mole holes.
• Reapply as needed.
• You should probably test this in a small area of your yard first, as it can damage your lawn or plants. Start small then go big if you dont notice any damage.
• You can reduce the soap and castor oil concentrations if you notice plant damage, or just add more water to dilute the DIY repellent.

Easy enough?

Removing Gophers And Moles

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Should You Get Rid Of Moles

Thats up to you.

Do you want a pest scouring your flowers, plants, and lawns digging holes everywhere and leaving mounds of dirt?

Probably not. Theyre an essential part of the ecosystem and do their part in balancing out the food chain.

You can get rid of even the most persistent moles by using natural home remedies for your yard. This is humane and avoids you having to kill them.

How Do I Control Ground Moles In My Yard

You can control moles in your yard by doing a few different things.

There are three main steps to controlling moles:

• Cleaning up and maintaining your yard
• Repelling the moles
• Preventing future mole infestations

This pest control guide covers all three steps. Well discuss each one in detail so you have everything you need to know in one place. Well start with the basics.

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Does Dog Poop Get Rid Of Moles

This is one of the oldest tricks in the book.

You can actually use dog poop and bury it directly into a molehill. Youll obviously want to use gloves and a doggy bag preferably to handle the dog feces.

Just grab the turd and drop it directly into the molehill. After that, add some water to make it smell.

Add a pile of dirt on top to seal off the entrance. Be sure you dont cover the poop. You want the poop to go deep into the tunnel so that when you seal off the molehill, the dirt you use doesnt cover up the poop.

This will ensure that the dog poops scent will travel through the tunnel and smoke the mole out.

Here are some tips:

• Use fresh dog poop and avoid dried ones
• Water it well to keep it hydrated
• Use as many pieces as you can

Bigger dogs mean bigger poop

You can also dig into the ground to expose the tunnel network. Then drop the poop directly into the tunnel, add water, and then cover up the hole.

This will let you add more dog poop within the tunnel system and really disturb the ground mole.

More Ways To Get Rid Of Moles And Gophers

If other methods fail, you may opt for the most aggressive approach. The most effective way to control moles and gophers is with traps or poisons that result in the death of the creatures. If you use poisons or chemicals, be sure to follow the product directions carefully and keep pets and children at a safe distance. Chemical repellents and poisons are hazardous to pets and children in and around the treated area.

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I Bet You Didnt Know Coffee Grounds Were A Natural Way To Fight The Battle Against Moles

Put another way … you can recycle those used coffee grounds by scattering them over the tunnels themselves. The best part… the scent is annoying to these varmints just as much as their tunnels in your yard annoy you. This method in conjunction with methods 6 , 3 , and 2 would be a good natural combo attack on these yard destroying varmints.

My Recommendation For Killing Moles In Your Yard

Traps like the Wire Tek 1001 EasySet Mole Eliminator Trap are highly effective with little risk on the setters part. Its the trap I recommend and I have used it myself.

These traps do not require any digging, and there are no above ground hazards, so its safe to use without closing on you. And its safe for kids and pets once set.

You step on the setting lever to trigger the trap. Set it on the active run and check every few hours. Move it 1-2 times per day for the most effective use.

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Get Rid Of Their Food Source

This is probably the best way to get rid of moles. Its humane, safe, and completely natural.

You dont have to trap, kill, or exterminate any moles to do this. Youre simply controlling their environment to make it less desirable to them. Thus, theyll leave and stay out forever.

Ground moles eat bugs. Mainly earthworms and other soft-bodied insects found on lawns. If you get rid of these bugs, then theyll have nothing to eat and will leave in search of food.

To do this, youll want to assess the situation.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• What are the moles eating?
• Where are they eating it?
• Are they eating more than one bug?

What can you do to eliminate or reduce the bug theyre eating?

Find out what theyre eating. And then get rid of it. While youre in the process, get rid of all the other potential bugs also.

You can often use a few DIY home remedies thatll wipe out a whole bunch of pests rather than one. Thus, you can hit multiple birds with one stone and eliminate the food source.

This is the best way to get rid of persistent moles. You dont have to kill them and its completely humane, as theyll leave on their own. This is one of the simplest home remedies, but most often overlooked.

For example, you can use essential oils .

Earthworms

Or if you find out that theyre after actual earthworms, you can practice simple habits like not watering as much until theyre gone.

You can actually just water less to reduce the number of earthworms.

How Do I Know If I Have A Problem

Moles create an extensive network of tunnels, many of which are used only once. Temporary surface tunnels are where the sod is raised and looks like ridges. These feeding tunnels are used a few times, then abandoned. Deeper tunnels from which the mole must dig dirt, forming molehills, are used mainly as the living quarters.

You probably have a vole infestation if you find:

• bark that has been removed completely around the base of a tree
• 2.5 to 5 cm wide dead strips through matted grass leading to shallow underground burrows
• small piles of brownish droppings and short pieces of grass along the runways

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