Thank you for your many replies and suggestions. It is winter here in Jersey
, but we had a week of 50 to 60 degree weather and I was surprised the 1 the
moles were active and 2 the extent of the area they had covered(10 ft by 30
to 40 ft) from the back yard to the front. In the beginning they were
confined to the fringes of the backyard. So I will probably try to keep my
grubs down and let them live as long as I can mow the lawn, one of my fav
things to do.(ha)
"paghat" wrote in message
news
In article . com,
"greenfoot" wrote:
You have my sympathy. There are several types of moles. Some are
harmless, creating just a few small mounds and almost unnoticable
tunnels. These ones are kinda cute. Some are destructive; these are
not cute.
I could easily live with harmless ones. Most of your replie are about
these. Heck, I'd like one. I prefer to live in harmony with nature if
I can. The moles I had were not the harmless cute kind. They
destroyed my back yard. I am not kidding. We are talking about more
than 50 mounds (each at least 2 feet across and 6 inches high) in a
smallish surbaban backyard. This was in a dulex, and the tennents
could not mow because of the mounds. If I raked them all flat, the
next day there would be half a dozen more... and more the next. One of
our tennents sprained an ancle when her foot sunk into one of the
hollow spots.
With rare exceptions, in the main there are no "harmful" moles, if actual
damage to property or plantlife is the measure of harm. But a single
Townsend's mole certainly can make dozens of mole-hills all by itself.
This activity does no harm & much good in an ecological context, but
anyone who wants a perfect lawn will naturally regard it is unsightly to
the highest degree. "Perfect lawn" is to me a horrible thing (see:
http://www.paghat.com/lawnloony.html ); even so, I can certainly
understand why thirty, forty, or fifty piles of dirt in the front yard
would not be tolerable to a lot of homeowners.
If its not a Townsend's though, no other mole is that mightily
industrious. And the real issue would be this: If there are fifty
mole-hills in the front yard, the sod is greatly infested with grubs which
can kill lawns, as otherwise the mole would be industrious somewhere else,
so the Townsend's is doing good work rather than harmful, even if those
piles of dirt aren't attractive.
Traps eventually worked. However, you must follow the directions
carefully and monitor them closely (several times a day) if you want
any success. I could not check them daily, so it took a whole season.
They yard needed to be reseeded completely come fall.
A few harmless ones... enjoy them.
Destructive yard destroyers, trap them or give up and move.
I agree with that final sentiment more than not. The FIRST choice should
always be tolerance if not outright enjoyment. Sometimes that's not
possible. Where the margin between tolerable & not tolerable begins or
ends is going to be a personal call with each gardener. My complaint is
that most people automatically assume they have to kill things & don't
actually think about it rationally, as more often than not there's no
reason at all.
If a mole really must be killed & it can be done without too much
disfigurement to the pelt, it is super-soft & worth saving. Turn it into a
dollhouse carpet.
-paghat the ratgirl
--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
Visit the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com
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