Hi.. Does anyone have any fool proof way to get rid of a mole? I have heard
they are so tough to get rid of.. he is digging up my lawn!! thanks Rainy

Traps work.

I also have other critters in my yard, bunnies, squirrels, and birds.. lots
of them.. can you specify a specific trap that will work on just moles?
Rainy
"Pat" wrote in message
...
Traps work.

Caster Oil. I don't remember if you mix it. Google 'castor oil and
Moles' that should give it to you somewhere. It works for me!
It has to be 'pure cold pressed', not the cheap stuf, avaiable only in
healt stores I think.

thank you very much, I will try this.. not to appear stupid, but what i do
with it once I buy it.. does it go in a trap.. or what?
"Ben" wrote in message
oups.com...
Caster Oil. I don't remember if you mix it. Google 'castor oil and
Moles' that should give it to you somewhere. It works for me!
It has to be 'pure cold pressed', not the cheap stuf, avaiable only in
healt stores I think.

You will find instructions on this site

http://www.westcliffe.ca/News/Wildli...ife_garden.asp

In article . com, "Ben"
wrote:

You will find instructions on this site

http://www.westcliffe.ca/News/Wildli...ife_garden.asp

"The presence of moles does not necessarily result in damage. Before
starting a management program, first determine whether real damage is
occurring"[University of Nebraska Institute of Agriculture & Natural
Resources]. In wet conditions mole runs will be shallow enough that
tunnel-ridges appear in very close-cropped yards. This does not actually
damage the lawn, but the ridges can be tamped back down, & when this
happens often enough, moles change their tunnelling methods to keep from
getting them tamped closed. They are most industrious in lawns that are
infested with something that WILL kill the lawn, so the general rule of
thumb is, "If you have moles, you need moles."

As for the westcliffe recipe linked above, the recipe is right, but
sprinkling a bit of it with a sprinkling can in a few areas will have no
effect. A mole never abandons its tunnels over these repellant recipes
poored into entryways or portions of their tunnels. ANY messing around
with a tunnel entrance causes a mole to seal up that entrance & tunnel
around it, whether it is with a shovel, a water hose, a nosey dog, or a
so-called repellant.

Numerous field trials have been published with very mixed results, but the
best-case study found that when castor oil (6% solution) absolutely
drenches an entire area, with a couple tablespoons of dishwashing
detergent (as a surficant) per gallon of water; & if this is sprayed over
THE ENTIRE AREA very liberally, so that there is no way for the mole to
just move a tunnel left or right to get away from the oil -- then for so
long a every section of the garden & lawn stinks of castor oil the mole
will hunt its grubs in other yards for up to 30 days.

The effect at its best is always temporary, & some of the "best case"
field studies cited by vendors of mole repellants have turned out mostly
to go into the category of "irreproducible results" as the greater
majority of field studies don't even show the moderate temporary benefit,
leading some specialists to just warn that all repellants "including
castor oil are ineffective" [themoleman.com, the best website on this
topic] or "have little value in controlling moles" [Robert Corrigan Ph.D,
Animal Damage Control, Purdue University]. "Little value" is the key
phrase, as it may have a LITTLE value. As the Mole Man puts it, "This old
concoction never did work and never will work and if it did work as
intended, as a repellent, it just puts a bad situation off, leaving the
moles to dig and reproduce elsewhere." A single mole's territory typically
covers three or more surburban properties so it's no big deal to the mole
to spend a while in the further tunnels until normal watering or rainfall
gets rid of the castor oil stench & then they start patrolling those
tunnels again.

Most moles do no harm to gardens, & the first thing to do is assess
whether or not typical gardener overreaction is the only problem. Mole
tunnels do NOT kill lawns; they aerate lawns while cleaning out harmful
grubs. They rarely eat plant material. With the exception of the
Townsend's mole which is a very industrious moundbuilder, most moles don't
even make very many mounds, & for as long as their established tunnels
provide enough food, they don't even extend their tunnels, they just
maintain their extant runs. In a drought or food shortage conditions they
will get industrious again. They are beneficial to gardens by eating
common harmful insects, & aerating soil that could otherwise become
compacted & less pleasing to perennials. I doubt I'd be able to tolerate a
Townsend's mole, but we frequently have a resident Coast mole & when the
cats get one it's kinda sad. The Coast mole's activity takes a very
careful eye to even notice its work; it makes few mounds & its entryways
are very unobtrusive. Worst they've ever done is pushed up a few tulip
bulbs that were in their way, but no harm otherwise.

They are territorial & a yard generally only has one mole at a time. In
rare ocasions a single acre will have three moles with their own
non-intersecting tunnels; if a mole finds a neighboring mole in its runs,
there'll be a big fight about it. If you kill one, another mole will move
in immediately because adolescents get beaten up if they stay in their
mothers' territory so have to find a place that is not patrolled by an
established mole. A location where a vanished mole already did the work of
making extensive underground runs is VERY appealing to an adolescent mole.
So mole-haters have to fight them persistently & constantly & rarely
succeed at going more than a week or two without a mole. If the garden is
pleasing to a mole it is probably because it has harmful grubs.

Moles are too smart for live traps. Other than liberally soaking the
entire property with castor oil, no other repellant works; virtually all
home recipes for repellants, & home methods like pinwheels & other
folkloric methods of mole control, always fail. They want live food
(snails, grubs, slugs, worms predominantly) so poison bait doesn't get
them. Sonic gadges are totally bogus. The one sure-fire method of getting
rid of one mole is to know how to set cruel scissors or spear traps in
such a way that the mole doesn't detect the tinkered-with tunnel; it
sometimes takes an expert at mole control to place these traps in a manner
that doesn't forworn that smart little mole. But you can find instructions
for how to use spear-traps at themoleman.com, together with warnings about
these traps NOT being user-friendly so that a professional trapper is apt
to be needed.

A terrier, dachshund, or cat that knows what it is doing can usually
control moles, but the typical spoiled dog or cat wouldn't have a clue.

If as in 99.9% of cases the mole isn't actually doing any harm, it would
be way smarter to just tolerate the mole. The Mole Man's pages have the
best information for people who just cannot tolerate moles harmless or
helpful or whatever else. My article on the other hand is slanted more
toward tolerance:
"Our Friend the Mole"
http://www.paghat.com/mole.html

-paghat the ratgirl
--
Get your Paghat the Ratgirl T-Shirt he
http://www.paghat.com/giftshop.html
"In every country and in every age, the priest has been hostile to
liberty. He is always in alliance with the despot." -Thomas Jefferson

"Rainy" wrote in message
news:aEoJe.3780$084.332@attbi_s22...
Hi.. Does anyone have any fool proof way to get rid of a mole? I have
heard
they are so tough to get rid of.. he is digging up my lawn!! thanks
Rainy

Years ago I got rid of mine with a phosphorous based poison in their
tunnels - think it generated phosphine which is a highly poisonous gas.
Other mole poisons in their tunnels cut them down but they came back.
Frank

Rainy wrote:
Hi.. Does anyone have any fool proof way to get rid of a mole? I have heard
they are so tough to get rid of.. he is digging up my lawn!! thanks Rainy



If you or a friend or neighbor have a cat and they use clumping cat
litter, you can stick a *used clump* in a hole or two. The smell of cat
urine will chase them away.

/J
--
Two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing wonder and awe -
the starry heavens above me and the moral law within me. - Immanuel Kant

Traps are placed in the moles tunnel. Not likely to harm any animal except
moles. I like the pincher style trap similiar to gopher traps. Several
other types of traps are available. Check out
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn74115.html

Use a Weed Twister www.weedtwister.com to damage the mole tunnel.
Moles will not return to damaged tunnels. Constant vigilance will
motivate the mole to find other areas.

_______
EWIRM: Nature makes plants, humans make weeds!

The only foolproof way to get rid of moles is to use a mole trap. You will need at least two and some patience. Locate a tunnel or air hole, put trap in hole and cover top with a bucket so air can't be seen. Then wait...and wait. You may need to try different locations. Don't poke around too much or you will leave human smell.