How To Get Rid Of Moles In Your Lawn Naturally

Get Rid Of Ground Moles With Cayenne Pepper Garlic & Onions

Being warm-blooded creatures, moles dont like spicy foods such as cayenne pepper, garlic, and onions because they irritate their mucus membranes and respiratory tract when smelled or ingested by them.

Although they are not harmful to pets and children, they are unpleasant to the moles and will make them find somewhere else to dig.

• Step 1: Fill a coffee can with 1 cup cayenne pepper, 1 cup crushed garlic cloves, and 1 cup diced onion. Add 1 gallon of water and cover the top with a lid. The mixture will keep for about one month in an airtight container.
• Step 2: Mix 2 tbsp. cayenne pepper with 2 cups water in a spray bottle or garden sprayer. Shake well before using on the lawn or garden area where there are mole tunnels or mounds of dirt. Spray each tunnel entrance or mound thoroughly with the mixture every two weeks until no new signs appear.
• Step 3: Sprinkle cayenne pepper directly onto mole tunnels at any time or after rainwater has washed it away from other plants in your garden. To protect other plants from being burned by the cayenne pepper, pour it into a salt shaker first when applying it directly.

Lastly One Of The More Invasive But Effective Methods To Kill Or Ward Off Moles And Gophers Is To Leverage The Carbon Monoxide Exhaust From Your Vehicle

These harmful emissions will persuade moles and gophers to get out of the yard or in some cases even kill them if thats OK with you. Just make sure any leaks are covered up in the mole’s tunnels and this is a effective way to persuade moles and gophers that your yard is not their new home.

Here is a helpful video on how to pull this off

In conclusion these are eight natural or borderline un-natural alternatives to fight the battle and ultimately win your war against moles and gophers in your yard so they no longer destroy all of your hard work on creating the perfect looking golf course quality yard.

What Smell Do Moles Hate

Moles are affected by smell and lawn care people take advantage of it. So as mole dont like the smell of tar and you should stoping moles run-off position. So it must be useful if you spray smelling water with a mixture of pepper and a cigar. Using salt scattering or washroom smelling detergent can also because of moles death.

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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.

Are Moles Causing Havoc In Your Garden Three Experts Suggest Ways To Get Rid Of Moles And Put Molehills To Good Use

1) Use the molehill compost

Edible gardener Mark Diacono: These animals are impossibly cute so to get rid of moles is even more of an unsavoury undertaking than it might be. In any event, trying to get rid of moles may prove a futile, as well as an unpleasant exercise because they travel about using a network of semi-permanent tunnels deep underground. They dig shallower channels nearer to the surface when they search for food.

There is almost certainly another mole to take the place of any you kill, so learn to live with the occasional visitation if you can. Take advantage of the spoil of perfectly sifted topsoil they leave on the surface because makes a good base for potting compost. I simply add sand and perhaps a little coir or something similar.

2) Try strong smells and noise

Biodynamic gardener Tom Petherick: Moles are fond of earthworms so fertile soil is therefore bound to attract the little furry creatures. Bonuses to having them include increased drainage, especially in a clay soil. Keep the soil from the mole hills so you can use it for potting on young plants.

3) Use mole traps

TV gardener and nurseryman Toby Buckland: I swear by the traditional mole traps but there are now humane traps available. You need to make sure you check these at least daily because moles feed regularly and will starve quickly. You also have the issue of where to release them.

*Frightening fact*

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Pests Commonly Confused With Moles

Moles can be easily distinguished from voles and shrews simply by the front feet.

The large paws with claws are the most obvious feature thats exclusive to moles out of the entire bunch.

Moles also have their long snout and a pair of ears and eyes that you cant see because theyre way too small.

Theyre predatory pests and only eat bugs, arthropods, and other pests and spend most of their time in their tunnel.

Get Rid Of Their Food

Moles love insects. Things like grubs are delicious treats for them. If youre getting moles, theres a likelihood you have a healthy grub population too.

Taking measures to get grubs out of your yard with yearly grub treatments, youll make your lawn less attractive to moles. If they dont find enough food, theyll leave sooner or later.

However, this is only partially effective, as they may stay and feed on other insects, like worms. This mole prevention strategy is good, but its not usually an effective mole removal strategy.

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How To Get Rid Of Ground Moles With Castor Oil

Castor oil has an unpleasant taste and smell that deters moles from entering your yard. It also makes their tunnels collapse so that they cannot move around easily.

Simply mix 1 part castor oil with 10 parts water in a spray bottle, shake well and spray on the molehills as well as areas you suspect might have mole activity.

Loud Noises To Keep Moles Out Of Your Yard

Moles have highly sensitive hearing their fine hairs recognize even the slightest vibrations. Making loud noise creates intense sound waves that may drive the moles away.

To get rid of moles in your yard, try one of the following home remedies:

Empty Bottles: Stick empty glass bottles without lids into the mounds at an angle so that only the neck of the bottle is sticking out. The sound the wind makes in the bottles is barely audible to you but may be reason enough for the mole to move.

Homemade Wind Chimes: Place metal rods into the ground in several places and attach empty soda cans to the top with a string. The sound of cans hitting the pole should drive the mole away.

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Alternative Methods To Prevent Moles From Digging In Your Garden:

If you cant try the methods above, then go ahead and give these a whirl. You may find that these methods work better for your situation .

Spray Cayenne Pepper in Molehills

If you see molehills, another way of getting rid of the moles inside is to spray a small amount of cayenne pepper and water into the entrance.

Moles dislike cayenne pepper because of how spicy it is. Its a good alternative solution if you dont want to try the steps above.

Improve Your Gardens Water Drainage to Deter Moles

Since moles dont like dry soil, you can try to improve your gardens drainage to reduce moisture.

The best way to do this is to watering less frequently or to go with a raised garden bed, as I talked about above.

Moles dont like dry soil because its harder to dig through. Additionally, fewer grubs are likely to appear as a result of the dry soil, further discouraging moles from coming to your garden.

The downside to this method is pretty glaring, as youll need to water your plants less. If you currently have a mole problem, make sure that you are not overwatering your plants. Otherwise, this solution may not be for you.

Lastly, Moles are Still Active in Winter

Even if you dont see it, moles are still digging during the winter because they dont hibernate. They actually cant store fat, so they have to eat constantly and cannot hibernate.

References

Rudge, A. J. B. . Catching and keeping live moles. Journal of Zoology, 149, 42-45.

Identification: Is It A Mole Vole Or Gopher

• Mole
• Vole
• Gopher

If the damage to your yard is beyond just aesthetic, then theres a chance that moles arent the problem. Moles, voles, and gophers are often mistaken for each other, but there are distinct differences between each of them.

One of the first signs of identifying your pests is based on the damages. Moles only eat the grubs and worms in your soil. Voles and gophers, on the other hand, would much rather munch on your fresh greens or damage your plants.

If youre seeing mounds of dirt in your yard but no destruction to your plants, then you more than likely have a mole problem. In contrast, if you have a vole or gopher problem, youll see that your plants are destroyed rather than the soil around them.

In total, voles and gophers cause much more terror than moles. For voles, your plants could dry out or become unrooted due to the animals munching at the base of the plant.

Gophers have a tendency to pull out entire plants all at once. They just go underground and pull their snack inside, roots and all!

To make identification a little bit easier, you can clearly identify a mole by noticing their bright red/pink nose and long pink claws. A vole, on the other hand, is much smaller and looks more similar to a rat.

One more note about spotting moles is that they genuinely look like they dont have eyes at all .

Out of these three animals, gophers are the largest of the group and have a similar look to that of a large rat.

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Why You Have Moles In Your Yard And How To Get Rid Of Them

You take pride in your yard, and rightfully so. Carefully organizing and scaping your yard and garden is an art form. Unfortunately, your hard work can easily be ruined by tunnels and hills.

Moles dig holes in yards and lawns because they are looking for food such as grubs and insects. Moles can be deterred from a lawn by using natural plant repellents such as marigolds, used coffee grounds, or by building an underground garden fence.

Moles can cause a great deal of damage to your lawn, even if they dont actually eat the plants in your garden. Heres all you need to know about the reasons moles are in your yard and how to keep them away.

Planting And Using Barriers To Deter Moles Or Gophers

Certain kinds of plants in your yard can help deter moles. Moles dislike the smells from plants like daffodils, marigolds and anything from the allium family. This kind of plant barrier is typically safe for children and pets, plus it makes a lovely colorful addition to your yard.

To deter gophers, plant in raised beds. You can also make gopher baskets from netted material and put bulbs or young plants in them. This will allow the bulbs and plants to grow while keeping the gophers out.

Ready-made gopher and mole barriers are also available in the form of baskets that can be placed around plants to protect them from being eaten.

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How To Check For Moles

Learning how to get rid of moles involves knowing how to check for them on your property. Moles rarely come to the grounds surface unless its time for them to mate. And while they dont cause a significant amount of damage to large open spaces, moles are problematic to yards because they destroy bulbs, grass, and plant roots.

Checking for moles involves inspecting your yard and along walkways. If you see mounds of soil or ground protrusions near walkways, thats a telltale sign of moles digging. The best way to determine if youre looking at a molehill is its size. Theyre typically small, but can be up to one foot in diameter. Youll also find that the majority of mole damage occurs in moist and shady areas where the ground is abundant with earthworms, grubs, and other insects.

Do You Need Natural Repellents For Moles

The market offers tremendous options of natural mole repellents.

The following are the recommended options:

• Mole and Gopher RepellantPrice: $21.9. This is a top ranked mole repellant. A single application of the repellent keeps away the moles for up to 4 months. It has the required tunnel penetration making it easy to reach the moles in whatever depths.
• Yard Gard Organic Moles Repellent Price: $43.95. This is a natural method of repelling the moles. It is made of natural ingredients Contains castor oil, limestone, red pepper and binding agent. This makes it environmentally friendly and safe to use for a long time. It is advisable that you water the lawn before application for a long lasting effect.
• Defenders Mole Repellent Scatter GranulesPrice: $7.5. It is a biodegradable repeller granule that are humane and can be used in the presence of children and pets. The pellets arent harmful to the plants making it ideal for a plant-covered lawn. Its main ingredients are plant oils. When applied in the field, they taint the moles food source leaving them with scarce food. As a result, they migrate to find other conducive environments.
• Lawn Mole Castor OilPrice: $54.25. This is a simple and easy-to-use natural repellant. It is environmentally friendly. It is effective against both black and ground mole. It has a long repelling effect that can last for months.Further details can be found here.

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Does Juicy Fruit Gum Kill Moles

For some reason, Juicy Fruit seems to work well against moles. Sometimes. The method has no concrete proof that it actually works.

But many anecdotal reports from homeowners say that Juicy Fruit gum does work against moles.

All you need to do is pick up a pack of Juicy Fruit. Get a bulk pack so you have enough. Cut the gum into ½ inch squares.

After youve prepped your gum, go ahead and get a small shovel. Dig into a mole tunnel and drop the piece of gum in there. Do this around various tunnels until you use up all the gum.

Be careful though- you dont want to scare off the mole. Dont disturb the tunnel and dont destroy their home.

Dont scare off the mole- you want to trick the mole.

After you drop a few pieces around, cover up the top of the tunnel again. When the moles eat the gum, itll possibly kill the mole.

This method is lethal and will kill moles. Avoid if possible. But If you have a prevalent mole problem, you can consider doing this technique if youre desperate.

Mole tunnels are a hazard for your yard because you can fall into their holes. When you apply the gum, be sure to mark your areas so you know theres loose soil there.

You dont want to stop into a hole you dug that goes into a mole tunnel because it can collapse.

Eliminating Moles In Your Lawn With Vegetative Barriers

Another way of getting rid of moles in your yard naturally is to use vegetative barriers. There is a range of mole repellent plants that moles detest, and growing them in strategic locations deters them from your garden.

• Fritillarias

Using natural mole deterrents is one of the easiest ways to keep these pests out of your garden area.

Make a natural wall of colorful flowers and foliage by planting marigolds, fritillarias, and daffodils around garden beds and grow alliums such as scallions, leeks, chives, onions, and garlic around your vegetable garden.

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Moles Vs Pocket Gophers

Another creature that inflicts substantial damage on lawns and gardens is the pocket gopher, which includes about 35 different species from the Geomyidae family of rodents. Like moles, gophers often leave volcano-shaped mounds of earth piled up as the product of their tunneling, but unlike moles, gophers do not leave raised ridges in the lawn, as their tunneling activity generally occurs at a deeper level. Slightly larger than moles, gophers have similar spade-like front paws and feed primarily on plant roots. This makes the pocket gopher an even more serious pest than moles, whose damage to lawns is generally cosmetic, a byproduct of simple tunneling.

Gophers have incisor teeth that are visible, and small but clearly identifiable ears. Moles, on the other hand, have no visible ears and their teeth do not protrude. Trapping gophers requires a slightly different method, with traps that are specially designed for catching gophers the traps are usually placed underground, within the tunnels.

Do Coffee Grounds Repel Moles

Coffee grounds, as we know it, arent that pleasant to sniff .

Because of the strong odor they give off, moles will avoid it because they despise the smell. You can buy a can of coffee grounds and literally just sprinkle them around the yard.

Toss them in key areas such as:

• On soft soil
• Directly into mole tunnels
• Around the perimeter of your garden

Some plants may react to coffee grounds, so youll want to be careful to make sure youre not harming your plants.

Use the grounds on just a few plants first. You can use used coffee grounds from your morning brew.

Just throw them directly where you suspect ground moles to be present. They act as a natural repellent thats safe for most plants and your family.

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