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New Brunswick

I went out to dig my artichokes yesterday and found they had already been dug up! There were two piles about a foot in diameter just lying on the ground. Something had chewed on most of them! The growing area itself was empty! My husband lifted up an old 4 x 4 and out ran a mole. Would it do such a thing? (Whatever it was completely cleaned out the patch!) Needless to say, I was hot to trot. I had another small patch however and whatever it was never discovered it. Is there any way to deter this beast...whatever it is, other than killing it?

4/27/2003 11:55:30 AM

my dad is practically a proffesional mole trapper. he keeps track of how many he catches every summer. he uses mole traps that have have two claws that pinch shut when the mole tunnels under them. you have to locate the mole runs, which will be little raised tunnels. place the trap there and you should get something. don't be discouraged if the trap is set off and there's no mole in it, that happens sometimes. They can burrow up to 30 ft a day, so one or two moles may be making all the damage. There are also traps that shoot spikes down into the ground, but those don't work as well. I have also heard that if you chew Juicy Fruit and put it in their mounds, they'll eat it and die, but I don't know if that works or not.

4/27/2003 12:51:35 PM

New Brunswick

Haha....well I sure could try the juicy fruit.....my favorite gum. I have seen "live" catch and release mice traps....but the little buggar is so fat from my artichokes that he just might not fit. LOL I have barn cats so I dare not set a trap one of them could get into. Theren was an old fallen-down shed handy the artichokes and hubby drug it out of there...so the little critter might just fall into pussies clutches, now that his hiding place is gone. Hmmmm...did not see any tunnels...maybe my mole is a big fat mouse?

4/27/2003 4:19:17 PM

moles live most of their lives underground in tunnels. maybe it is a fat mouse.

4/27/2003 7:30:43 PM

Chico, Ca

We use "mole med" brand liquid repellent it has castor oil in it. Moles do not like the smell at all. moles are blind and hunt by smell. They are also hemophiliacs and will bleed to death if scratched.to use mole med just water it in, it works for a month or so. If you can sneak some hair clippings into their runs it gives them a terrible case of itching which can send them away or kill them if they nick themselves scratching. This works well for gophers too, but they are not hemophiliacs like moles.By the way It sounds like gophers are the culprit. Moles only eat bugs not plants. they can trash root systems looking for worms and grubs though. We lost some birch trees that way. they girdled the root ball and the trees dried up.

mole med can be found at most large home improvement stores.

Good luck, Robert

4/27/2003 7:39:37 PM

Ctpumpkin@optonline.net

I'm usually too embarassed to admit it, but Brigette has help pump up the courage so here goes....I used to trap Moles for hire too. Victor makes good traps. Both kinds too. Juicy Fruit works for some folks. So does throwing crushed glass (not large shards) down into the tunnels. Don't touch anything that you decide to try with your own hands especially if you've washed them recently. Moles don't like the Human scent. Wear surgical gloves or make sure you're really grimey with garden dirt before touching a trap. Glass should be hammered in a tripled up paper bag on the driveway (be careful).
Castor oil is supposed to ruin the Moles fur which causes illness. Hasn't worked well for me.
Much easier & more effective is Kaput Mole Gel with Warfarin. About $8.00 per tube. One is more than enough.

Steve

4/27/2003 10:34:32 PM

you would be an inspiration for my dad, steve. it would be a good summer job for him. he already traps moles in our yard, and my bro's gf's yard, and he used to trap them in my grandma's yard before she moved. his record is 30 in one summer, with a running total of 164. obsession? yes.

4/28/2003 1:34:05 AM

Western Pa.

I agree with C&R, moles spend most of their lives underground and eat bugs and grubs, seldomly plants. I have seen "moles" that were actually mice, voles, or shrews. I've stated this before, and some refuse to believe that it wasn't a mole that ate their plants. I guess some will never overcome "vole denial"! By the way, why does PETA only care about the "cute" critters?

4/28/2003 9:04:08 AM

Montoursville, PA

Twenty years ago I had excessive mole problems. I treated my whole property with Milky Spore Disease. No more moles as the attracting Japaneese Beatle Grubs have been killed.
I have had no moles and few beatles since. Moles don't fly so have no reason to seek the few fly-ins we experience. As the few fly-ins cycle to grub stage the get caught by the retended spore and die while creating still more spore. As as side benefit we have had no Skunks rooting for the grubs either.
....Now I read that Gardens Alive has an even better product called Grub-Away.
....If you cut off the food supply the moles will move onto your neighbors property for survival.

4/28/2003 9:54:27 AM