How To Get Rid Of Moles

Moles are an enigma for gardening enthusiasts and people who love to keep a nice lawn. While moles do their part to aerate the soil and remove plant pests from your yard, they also like to create holes all over the place that can be unsightly and even dangerous. As with any other lawn pest, the best way to take care of a mole problem is to understand what you are up against and know the best ways to handle the situation.

How Do I Know If I Have Moles?

The two most common ways to tell if you have moles is if your garden vegetables are being eaten and your lawn has little volcano-shaped mounds all over it. Moles eat only insects and sometimes vegetables, which is both great and terrible for gardeners. You will be happy to know that moles are loners who rarely travel in groups, which means that you might only have to get rid of one mole to solve your problem.

You can be pretty sure you are dealing with moles if your volcano-shaped holes in the ground lead to what looks like an underground network of tunnels. Moles constantly tunnel underground to find food, and that tunneling can cause your lawn to collapse in spots. Moles are hard workers, so you will need to address the problem quickly if you want to save your lawn.

What Does A Mole Look Like?

A mole is anywhere from six to eight inches long and is covered in brown or gray fur. It has a long snout on the front, and its front and back paws have what look like human fingers with long claws on them. At first glance, it can be almost impossible to see a mole’s eyes and ears, but rest assured that they do have both features.

How Long Does The Average Mole Live?

In the wild, a North American mole can live to be six or seven years old. Since moles do not eat many plants, they are not normally affected by the chemical pesticides used to keep out bugs. But if a mole does wander into a yard that uses chemicals, then its life span decreases significantly.

Why Do Moles Live In People’s Yards?

Moles eat approximately 80 percent of their body weight in bugs and larvae every day. Your finely kept lawn and well-fed garden tend to have the kinds of food moles love. A mole will burrow its way around your yard indefinitely looking for food until you put a stop to it. When a mole chooses your yard it is nothing personal, it is just survival.

How Do I Get Rid Of A Mole?

Let’s examine the following options for getting rid of a mole:

1. The first option, which is the hardest, is to simply catch the mole. You will need to be quick, but it is not impossible. Go around to all of the mounds the mole has created and either stomp the molehill down with your foot or tap it down with a shovel. Notice the direction of the holes and try to stand upwind of them because the mole can smell you coming. You will also need to stand perfectly still as the mole can hear your footsteps. When the mole pops its head out of a new mound, quickly dig into either side of the mound with two shovels. The shovels will trap the mole at the top of the mound, and you can put the mole into a box and take it miles from your home.
2. A second option is to use a blend of organic repellent that seeps into the soil. Moles have a heightened sense of smell that they use to find insects. Using an organic repellent irritates their sense of smell and taste and quickly find another place to dig for food.
3. A third option is to use a mole trap. First, find out if mole traps are legal in your state before you start setting traps. If mole traps are illegal, then use the humane method. If mole traps are legal, then get a couple of spring-loaded traps and put them in the mole’s tunnels. If you can determine the direction the mole is burrowing in, then that would be helpful. Set your traps and check them daily. After you have caught one mole, keep an eye out to make sure it was only a one-mole problem. If there are more moles, set more traps.
4. The last option is to use poisons or chemicals to try to get rid of moles. Consult a professional if you are interested in this option as they can offer advice on what to use as using poison make you susceptible to killing neighborhood pets, doing damage to your lawn or garden, and getting arrested (if it’s not legal in your state).

Prevention

The easiest way to prevent other moles from using the tunnels in your yard is to spray a combination of two tablespoons of dish soap, one cup of castor oil, and one gallon of water into the tunnels. You can also purchase solar-powered mole-repelling stakes and place them throughout your yard.

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