The Seasoned Gardener

Mouse Problems Will Start Soon

Fall weather,changing leaves, frosty mornings and mice in your house or garage.  The season is changing and mice are looking for a warm place to spend the winter.  That warm place could be your garage, shed, motor home, boat or a number of other areas where you may not want to have a dead mouse lingering for a few months before you find it. 

In cases like those above, one alternative to killing the mice may be to repel them from the area where you don't want them.  Repellents have been around for a long time, but they are enjoying a resurgence as new and improved products become available.  The benefit of repellents is that they only cause the rodent to move away and not kill them.  Usually, repellents are more environmentally sensitive, and unlike poisons or traps, present a limited risk to children and pets. 

One ofthe neweset mouse repellents on the market is Mouse Magic from Bonide Products.  Mouse magic is a combination of Peppermint and Spearmint oils on a corncob base which creates and unpleasant environment for mice but which is a pleasant smelling material for humans.  When  placed in a normal sized room (12X15X8) one packet will last up to 45 days for effective mouse repelling action.  Mouse Magic comes in a 4-pack and retails for less $6.00.  It can be found in many local garden centers and most Ace, Do It Best, and True Value Hardware Stores.

If you store a boat, RV, winter or summer vehicles, antique cars, or if you have a shed, outbuilding or even a summer or winter cabin or house, a mouse repellent may be just what you are looking for to keep these pesky and damaging critters out without killing them.   

Mole Control Requires Understanding of the Critter

Many people struggle to control moles in their lawns and gardens.  Moles are not rodents.  They are carnivorous animals whose main food source is earthworms and soil borne insects.  They also feed on grubs, which is the basis for one of the most often quoted errors for mole control.  Eliminating grubs from your lawn will not assure that you will eliminate moles as well.  Well intended garden center and nursery staff members have told consumers for years that grub control equals mole control.  Based on the diet of common and star nosed moles, this is not the case. 

Moles are territorial animals.  They occupy two different types of tunnels in your lawn.  The most visible are their feeding tunnels which are shallow and which criss-cross lawns creating unsightly mounds which conflict with lawn mowing and enjoyment of your lawn.  These feeding tunnels are where moles encounter their food sources includng grubs and earthworms.  A secondary tunnel system, indicated by small volcano-like mounds is the actual living tunnel for the mole.  This deeper tunnel connects to the feeding tunnels so that moles can range widely to feed.

Mole control or more accurately, "mole management" can employ repellents, traps and poisons to eliminate this pesky critter from your lawn.  Traps are effective if placed in active feeding tunnels.  To determine if a feeding tunnel is active you can stamp down the mounds in your lawn and then re-inspect them the next day to determine which ones are active.  Place traps in the active areas, and hope for the best.  Spring traps and spear traps work well, and if you get one you'll know it.  Poisons also work reasonably well if applied in active feeding tunnels.  Mole poisons are most often compounds containing arsenic or zinc phosphide which are highly toxic materials formulated in a bait which moles like.  Look for brand names like Moletox.  Usually control is quick.  Be sure to place poison baits in areas where pets and children absolutely can not access them.

Repellents also work well for mole control.  Repellents simply cause the mole to relocate, leaving your lawn area alone.  Bonide's MoleMax repellent is a castor oil granule which repels the mole through smell, taste and irritation.  One trick to effective mole control using a repellent is to leave an exit for the mole.  This is accomplished by treating only a portion of the lawn at a time leaving an escape route for the mole to use to leave your lawn.  If you apply the repellent to the entire area, you are likely to "surround" the mole making his or her departure doubtful.

Some plants also act to repel moles.  Castor bean plants, from which the castor bean meal in repellents is derived are effective, as is the "mole plant".  However, both plants are toxic to children and animals and should be well understood before planting. 

If your are successful in removing moles from your yard, be sure to apply a repellent product around the edges of your property on a regular basis.  This will close the door on moles revisiting your lawn and keep them away for good. 

SG