I have major mole problems. I have about 1/2-3/4 acre of lawnturf
(centipede) and nearly every inch has been undermined by moles. I have not
read anything that is really effective at eliminating this pest here or with
Google Usenet search. Lately I've been finding holes in the yard and
sticking the end of shovel down them and watching it go down 4 to 5'. This
is disturbing since I have a 4 year old who runs/plays in the yard and I am
fearful of his foot getting caught in a hole and injuring his leg/ankle. Are
these mole lairs? Will pouring anything down them help to subdue this
population?

Moles feed on grub worms and other larvae just beneath the soil surface.
Spray diozinon or a like substance. When their food is gone they will
also go.

In article ,
"richard holmes" wrote:

I have major mole problems. I have about 1/2-3/4 acre of lawnturf
(centipede) and nearly every inch has been undermined by moles. I have not
read anything that is really effective at eliminating this pest here or with
Google Usenet search. Lately I've been finding holes in the yard and
sticking the end of shovel down them and watching it go down 4 to 5'. This
is disturbing since I have a 4 year old who runs/plays in the yard and I am
fearful of his foot getting caught in a hole and injuring his leg/ankle. Are
these mole lairs? Will pouring anything down them help to subdue this
population?

Where do you live?
Moles leave "mole hills" of excavated dirt. They are territorial & there
is usually only one at a time living in a given area. They do not dig
deeply because they are excavating just under turf for grubs & worms, &
the deeper they dig the less food they find. Nor can they penetrate well
compacted soils that are deeper down. Their holes are not big enough
around for anyone to trip in. Indeed their actual entrances are hard to
find; mostly all anyone sees is the dirt shoved to the surface to create
the tunnels, & moles do not enter or exit by those dirt mounds. Only the
Townsends mole does so much mischief it's hard to live with, a single mole
can create dozens of mounds. All other mole species are very subdued about
their endeavors.

Pocket gophers on the other hand dig both shallow & very deep holes &
sometimes dig lots of them. They cast the soil around the mouth of the
holes rather than heaping up mounds, & the holes are sometimes big enough
for a child to step in, though a child clumsy enough to get hurt in a
gopher hole is probably already brain damaged from falling headlong off
the couch every day.

Gophers can be secretive in the presence of people & may not be easily
observed. Ask your local animal control about methods of controlling them.
Live trapping & release is sometimes not a legal option, it's elsewhere
the preferred method. Repellants exist galore; none of them work, though
you could go out every two or three days & put a shitload of cayenne
pepper down all of them, you'd sure annoy the bejabbers out of the
residents if not get rid of them. Crushing spring traps, scissor traps, &
spear traps placed by professionals do work, but are slow cruel deaths for
many a gopher. Poison also works. Pheromone-baited live traps (or even
pheromone-baited kill boxes) used during the breeding season reportedly
work best of all control methods, but I don't know if the requisit
pheromones are available commercially. The time to trap OR kill is late
winter through June while they are in breeding mode, & before the females
are raising young. Gophers are much to smart to capture when they're not
rutting, but just like people, not very smart at all when they're horny.

Many people live happily with gophers & occasionally semi-tame them so
they cease to be furtive, but their behavior varies from place to place,
some making only a coule hidden hidy-holes & a hundred feet of unseen
tunnel, then travel some distance away where there is a breeding territory
separate from a private food territory. Others more troublesomely make
dozens of holes mucking up the joint with a population that gets bigger
each year (usually only around agricultural land where there's scands of
food available).

It might be something else than gophers, but it's not moles if you're
seeing deep holes which a child's leg would fit in.

-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"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/

Try:
http://themoleman.com/

for everything you ever needed to know about moles. I have no affiliation,
etc, just think it's a great site that puts to rest a lot of mole myths and
gives you solid information.

Good luck,
Sue

Zone 6, Southcentral PA


"richard holmes" wrote in message
...
I have major mole problems. I have about 1/2-3/4 acre of lawnturf
(centipede) and nearly every inch has been undermined by moles. I have not
read anything that is really effective at eliminating this pest here or
with
Google Usenet search. Lately I've been finding holes in the yard and
sticking the end of shovel down them and watching it go down 4 to 5'. This
is disturbing since I have a 4 year old who runs/plays in the yard and I
am
fearful of his foot getting caught in a hole and injuring his leg/ankle.
Are
these mole lairs? Will pouring anything down them help to subdue this
population?

They do not dig
deeply because they are excavating just under turf

Wrong again ratbreath. Mole nesting chambers tend to be 12-18 inches deep.
They dig two types of tunnels, those just under the surface for feeding and
interconnecting tunnels 6 to 20 inches deep for travel between feeding and
nesting areas. You need to check your facts prior to posting.
Cheers from Ct. where there are plenty of crows,
Mark

In article ,
(IntarsiaCo) wrote:

They do not dig
deeply because they are excavating just under turf

Wrong again ratbreath. Mole nesting chambers tend to be 12-18 inches deep.
They dig two types of tunnels, those just under the surface for feeding and
interconnecting tunnels 6 to 20 inches deep for travel between feeding and
nesting areas. You need to check your facts prior to posting.
Cheers from Ct. where there are plenty of crows,
Mark

Our queriant said the holes were several feet straight down. Not that you
ever worry about what people are actually talking about.

--
"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"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/

Well, if you're sure there are no gophers in your region (so maybe
groundhogs, though they're usually more solitary & don't ordinarily have
multiple deep entrances as you describe, so I don't really suspect a
groundhog, but maybe), a quick phone call to animal control describing the
nature of the holes would likely get you a definitive diagnosis of
species, & advice on control. In the meantime, I'll repost an old bit
about groundhogs cuz why not. Also, an added rather odd note, a usenet
discussion erupted a couple years back in this newsgrkoup in which a
couple folks were swearing up & down "it worked for grampa" or they'd
tried it themselves, they'd eat a big steak dinner then take a dump in the
groundhog holes, which smelled like the presence of dangerous carnivores &
the groundhog moved away. I've no idea if there's truth to it but it does
have an appealing "natural solution" ring to it.


[REPOST OF GROUNDHOG & PRAIRIE DOG POST]

I lived with a prairie dog for a while. His name was Woodrow. Though they
are not notable climbers, he figured out a bag of peanuts, from which he
received very occasional treats, was kept on the top of a seven-foot-tall
shelf. He managed to get up there one day when I was letting him roam free
in what I thought was a "prairie dog proofed" room, & by the time I came
back in the room, he'd eaten the whole bag. Which gave him one hell of a
stomach ache & diarrhea & cost me a vet bill.

This was my room mate's pet but as she was gone a
lot, I was his defacto caretaker. He was a TERRIBLE pet for
destructiveness & odor & when my roommate moved out I was SO relieved not
to have Woodrow around anymore. I lived with him for nearly two years
though & have as many good memories of his charming behavior, as of bad
memories of stuff he ruined & messes he made & visitors who wanted to know
what that smell was.

Anyhow, in gardens, moles are insectivorous & cause no harm to a garden,
are actually beneficial, & it bothers me people are so insistent on
killing them. But groundhogs are vegetarians & will devour many things in
the garden. I would almost certainly attempt to accomodate a woodchuck or
the like even so. I mean, if I can forgive a prairie dog for chewing up a
rare book, I'm sure I could forgive a woodchuck for eating the flower
buds. But where I presently live I'm not likely to be tested on that
score (no groundhogs in this town).

As a big rodent fan myself, I've read several articles about people who've
befriended their garden woodchuck with quite a lot of success. They tend
to impact gardens a lot less if you feed them at predictable times of the
day, as they're lazy buggers at heart. Of course, having ONE semi-tame
woodchuck might become pretty easy, but if it became a happy extended
family, that could be big trouble. Here are a couple Pet
Groundhog/Woodchuck websites:
http://www.geocities.com/SiliconVall.../bob_lutz.html
There are lots of links at that site. Plus this groundhog lovers website:
http://www.hoghaven.com/
which has a photo section to die for, cute cute cute.

-paghat the ratgirl

PS: The following is quoted verbatim from a "Woodchucks in the Garden"
fact sheet including humane control measures:

The groundhog, or woodchuck, is a large rodent, about two feet long,
including its bushy tail. It has a compact, chunky body supported by
short, strong legs. The forefeet, which have long, curved claws, are well
adapted for digging. The coarse fur is gray on the upper body and
yellowish-orange on the underside.

Groundhogs prefer to live in open fields, woodlands and hedgerows. They
dig extensive burrows with two or more entrances. These burrows are
commonly located in fields, pastures, along fence rows, stone walls,
roadsides, and even at the bases of trees. Groundhogs feed on a variety of
vegetables, grasses and legumes. Some favorite foods are peas, beans,
carrot tops, alfalfa, clover and grasses. Early morning and evening hours
are the groundhog's preferred feeding times.

Control: Needless to say, groundhogs living near vegetable gardens and
other choice plantings can be real pests. Control measures are limited in
residential and suburban areas. Wire fencing discourages them sometimes.
Live-trapping may also be effective; bait the trap with apple slices or
vegetables such as carrots or ears of corn. Another method is flushing the
animals from their burrows, then filling the entrances with large rocks.
Admittedly, none of these solutions will take care of the problem
permanently, but they may reduce the damage groundhogs do.

--
"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"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/

Not that you
ever worry about what people are actually talking about.

Not that you ever worry about what misinformed balderdash you are penning.

On Wed, 12 Mar 2003 08:59:54 -0700,
(paghat) wrote:


Our queriant said the holes were several feet straight down. Not that you
ever worry about what people are actually talking about.

--

Now, I've looked in various online dictionaries as well as the Oxford
English Dictionary in my home and I can't find the word "queriant". I
see "querist" for "one who enquires" so I guess you made your word up,
but having said that, I really kinda like your word!! It has a better
lilt about it.

Regards
Geoff

On Wed, 12 Mar 2003 20:21:20 GMT, "Geoff"
wrote:

On Wed, 12 Mar 2003 08:59:54 -0700,
(paghat) wrote:


Our queriant said the holes were several feet straight down. Not that you
ever worry about what people are actually talking about.

--

Now, I've looked in various online dictionaries as well as the Oxford
English Dictionary in my home and I can't find the word "queriant". I
see "querist" for "one who enquires" so I guess you made your word up,
but having said that, I really kinda like your word!! It has a better
lilt about it.

Regards
Geoff


As a follow-up, my apologies Paghat! I have found a definition of
queriant on the following site.

http://members.tripod.com/~ArryshannaDragon/craft6.html

Queriant:
The person who is asking for answers at a Tarot or Rune reading.

Not sure if this applies to the enquirer about the mole lairs!

Regards
Geoff

In article , "Geoff"
wrote:

On Wed, 12 Mar 2003 08:59:54 -0700,
(paghat) wrote:


Our queriant said the holes were several feet straight down. Not that you
ever worry about what people are actually talking about.

--

Now, I've looked in various online dictionaries as well as the Oxford
English Dictionary in my home and I can't find the word "queriant". I
see "querist" for "one who enquires" so I guess you made your word up,
but having said that, I really kinda like your word!! It has a better
lilt about it.

Regards
Geoff

It would be cool if I could make up words that excellent & still so easily
understood, but all I did was use the less common spelling which is more
commonly querient. I'm surprised it's not in more dictionaries as it is
used in British legal documents in lieu of plaintiff (as one meaning).
Plus it is universally used among astrologers, scryers, geomancers,
diviners, & tarot readers -- the subject asking for advice is addressed
never as as querist but always as querent or querient (variations quarant
& queriant are permissible & so cited in the Dictionary of Astrological
and Astronomical Terms, though variant spellings are lacking in the
Dictionary of Tarot).

Broadly it is just a rare but very old synonym for Questioner, hence the
linguist you can contact at (www.linguist.org)
calls the people who use the Ask A Linguist service "querients." But given
its more common modern usage, it would usually be a questioner seeking
mystical rather than practical advice (PERHAPS linquistics qualifies!) so
someone asking whether deep holes in the ground are made by moles would be
more specifically a "querient" only if he was also asking if the moles can
get to the Land of the Dead that way, or was actually seeking the advice
of a melampomancer, one who tells fortunes by means of birthmarks & moles
(that could include doctors: "Your mole is malignant, you're gonna die").


So the word is in just about all occult dictionaries, & also in the Wwftd
Dictionary. Wwftd is pronunced Wifted. It's stands for Worthless Word of
the Day. If you subscribe you'll get yet the history of another just such
worthless word in your e-mail every morning! Go he
http://home.mn.rr.com/wwftd/disclaim.htm .

-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"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/

It would be cool if I could make up words that excellent & still so easily
understood, but all I did was use the less common spelling which is more
commonly querient. I'm surprised it's not in more dictionaries as it is
used in British legal documents in lieu of plaintiff (as one meaning).
Plus it is universally used among astrologers, scryers, geomancers,
diviners, & tarot readers -- the subject asking for advice is addressed
never as as querist but always as querent or querient (variations quarant
& queriant are permissible & so cited in the Dictionary of Astrological
and Astronomical Terms, though variant spellings are lacking in the
Dictionary of Tarot).

Broadly it is just a rare but very old synonym for Questioner, hence the
linguist you can contact at (www.linguist.org)
calls the people who use the Ask A Linguist service "querients." But given
its more common modern usage, it would usually be a questioner seeking
mystical rather than practical advice (PERHAPS linquistics qualifies!) so
someone asking whether deep holes in the ground are made by moles would be
more specifically a "querient" only if he was also asking if the moles can
get to the Land of the Dead that way, or was actually seeking the advice
of a melampomancer, one who tells fortunes by means of birthmarks & moles
(that could include doctors: "Your mole is malignant, you're gonna die").


So the word is in just about all occult dictionaries, & also in the Wwftd
Dictionary. Wwftd is pronunced Wifted. It's stands for Worthless Word of
the Day. If you subscribe you'll get yet the history of another just such
worthless word in your e-mail every morning! Go he
http://home.mn.rr.com/wwftd/disclaim.htm .

-paghat the ratgirl


LOL!! Briliant reply Paghat! See where I spotted the "occult" meaning
in a later post of mine!

Best regards
Geoff

hope my last didn't seem preachy or self righteous, in my strange
world that is comedy, on a serious note, if the burrow goes strait
down, it is gnomes. Animals lack the sufficent engineering skills to
port soil upward and behind them, while three or four gnomes with tiny
pails can sink a mine shaft like that in 3 or four hours.

TK