Hi,

I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. We have started clearing
it, but have been invaded by moles! Any ideas on non-harmful ways of
discouraging them? We've asked them nicely to go and burrow through the
bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.
TIA

--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.



--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.

On Jan 11, 11:50*pm, "Kathy" wrote:
Hi,

I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. *We have started clearing
it, but have been invaded by moles! *Any ideas on non-harmful ways of
discouraging them? *We've asked them nicely to go and burrow through the
bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.
TIA

--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.

--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.

You could have a look a this site seems harmless way to discourage
them.
http://www.humeseeds.com/mole1.htm

Red Tomatoe

The message
from "Kathy" contains these words:

I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

Morning, Kathy.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. We have started clearing
it, but have been invaded by moles! Any ideas on non-harmful ways of
discouraging them? We've asked them nicely to go and burrow through the
bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.

Sorry to be a wet blanket, but (as a onetime molecatcher) I know of no
way of discouraging them other than to trap them.

*UNLESS* you know someone who keeps ferrets.

Make a strong infusion of cleanings from the hutch, and liberally water
round the plot with it.

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig

The message

from Red Tomatoe contains these words:

You could have a look a this site seems harmless way to discourage
them.
http://www.humeseeds.com/mole1.htm

Snake oil...

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig

Kathy wrote:
Hi,

I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. We have started clearing
it, but have been invaded by moles! Any ideas on non-harmful ways of
discouraging them? We've asked them nicely to go and burrow through the
bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.
TIA


Problems with moles is a question that pops up on this group frequently.
I've tried everything. The only solution that really works is traps.
Proper traps that kill the little buggers. Forget sonic repellents
herbal pellets, plants that moles supposedly dislike, cooking oil,
gassing with car exhaust fumes, and all that crap. Traps, traps and more
traps. It takes a little practice to set the traps too. I've been
struggling to get rid of moles for years. More or less did get rid of
them last year with traps, but this year they are back again; so it is
an ongoing battle.
--
David in Normandy.
To e-mail you must include the password FROG on the
subject line, or it will be automatically deleted
by a filter and not reach my inbox.

In message ,
Rusty_Hinge writes
The message
from "Kathy" contains these words:

I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

Morning, Kathy.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. We have started clearing
it, but have been invaded by moles! Any ideas on non-harmful ways of
discouraging them? We've asked them nicely to go and burrow through the
bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.

Sorry to be a wet blanket, but (as a onetime molecatcher) I know of no
way of discouraging them other than to trap them.

*UNLESS* you know someone who keeps ferrets.

Make a strong infusion of cleanings from the hutch, and liberally water
round the plot with it.

My uncle Bert used to ram a tube down into their burrow, drop some
carbide down it, then pour water in.
I don't know how effective it was...
--
Gordon H
Remove "invalid" to reply

Thanks for all the advice. We don't really want to resort to traps, and it
may be pointless as there seem to be rather a lot on the site, which is why
we want to discourage them from our plot. Some one suggested dropping cat
poo down the holes, which might work, but we'd only want to do that on the
ones on the path.

Our other problem pest is rabbits. So, if we can find a way of turning
vegitarian rabbits into mole hunters, we've got it made :-}

--
Kathy

It's pointless to try and discuss ethics with a spider.

On Mon, 12 Jan 2009, Kathy wrote
Thanks for all the advice. We don't really want to resort to traps, and it
may be pointless as there seem to be rather a lot on the site, which is why
we want to discourage them from our plot. Some one suggested dropping cat
poo down the holes, which might work, but we'd only want to do that on the
ones on the path.

Our other problem pest is rabbits. So, if we can find a way of turning
vegitarian rabbits into mole hunters, we've got it made :-}


We had fairly good results in our garden in the Dordogne - on a rocky
slope with not very much depth of soil - with a product made by
Caussade, small batons of black smelly stuff that you poked into the
mole tunnel. You have to keep an eye out and do it when the hill is
fresh, but it has kept them at bay quite well. Mind you it's only a
small patch and access is limited to a narrow grass way between stone
walls, so provided we can keep the entrance clear, they can't get any
further. The Caussade site seems to be down at the moment, hope it will
come back.


--
Kate B

PS 'elvira' is spamtrapped - please reply to 'elviraspam' at cockaigne dot org dot uk if you
want to reply personally

"Kathy" wrote
I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. We have started
clearing it, but have been invaded by moles! Any ideas on non-harmful
ways of discouraging them? We've asked them nicely to go and burrow
through the bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.
TIA

A friend of mine used to import a produce called "Mole Away" from the USA
which people said worked well, unfortunately DEFRA found out and told him it
needed testing at enormous cost in order to be sold here. Uneconomic to
continue so he stopped importing it.
Thing is, it was basically Caster Oil, which you poured into the run and the
smell drove the animals away.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden

In article , says...

"Kathy" wrote
I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. We have started
clearing it, but have been invaded by moles! Any ideas on non-harmful
ways of discouraging them? We've asked them nicely to go and burrow
through the bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.
TIA

A friend of mine used to import a produce called "Mole Away" from the USA
which people said worked well, unfortunately DEFRA found out and told him it
needed testing at enormous cost in order to be sold here. Uneconomic to
continue so he stopped importing it.
Thing is, it was basically Caster Oil, which you poured into the run and the
smell drove the animals away.


Not having moles here, but is it possible to put barriers around? or do
they have to go too deep?
I had thought that there was too much fuss made about moles on this
newsgroup until I visited my cousin up near Cambridge, they can not
safely walk across their garden its so undermined!
I understand its a bit of a compliment to have moles as it means lots of
worms and good healthy soil :~)
--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of national collections of Clematis viticella cultivars and
Lapageria rosea

"Charlie Pridham" wrote after...
Bob Replied to
"Kathy" wrote
I've been lurking for a bit, but now I've got a question to ask please.

My friend and I took on an allotment in November. We have started
clearing it, but have been invaded by moles! Any ideas on non-harmful
ways of discouraging them? We've asked them nicely to go and burrow
through the bits we haven't dug yet but they wont play.
TIA

A friend of mine used to import a produce called "Mole Away" from the USA
which people said worked well, unfortunately DEFRA found out and told him
it
needed testing at enormous cost in order to be sold here. Uneconomic to
continue so he stopped importing it.
Thing is, it was basically Caster Oil, which you poured into the run and
the
smell drove the animals away.


Not having moles here, but is it possible to put barriers around? or do
they have to go too deep?
I had thought that there was too much fuss made about moles on this
newsgroup until I visited my cousin up near Cambridge, they can not
safely walk across their garden its so undermined!
I understand its a bit of a compliment to have moles as it means lots of
worms and good healthy soil :~)

We had them turn up right at the end of our tenure of our old allotment and
the little furry things dug right along a row of plants and undermined them.
The plants suffered badly.
We now have them on our "new" allotment, presumably because there are now
worms there, we having manured the ground well, and we now have a couple of
children's windmills stuck in the ground to try to discourage them. It's an
on old trick which has appeared to stop them coming onto the plot where the
windmills are. Will have to purchase some more to keep the whole plot mole
free and they need turning into the wind as it changes so they keep spinning
and vibrating.
I can only imagine what some of our "new" allotment gardeners think. :-)

--
Regards
Bob Hobden

The message
from Gordon H contains these words:

My uncle Bert used to ram a tube down into their burrow, drop some
carbide down it, then pour water in.
I don't know how effective it was...

Well - if you drop a match down afterwards and a mole is poking its nose
out of a molehill, likely it'll be in orbit, if not obit.

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig

The message
from "Kathy" contains these words:

Thanks for all the advice. We don't really want to resort to traps, and it
may be pointless as there seem to be rather a lot on the site, which is why
we want to discourage them from our plot. Some one suggested dropping cat
poo down the holes, which might work, but we'd only want to do that on the
ones on the path.

Our other problem pest is rabbits. So, if we can find a way of turning
vegitarian rabbits into mole hunters, we've got it made :-}

Siamese cats are best for moles, I'm informed.

Good on rabbits too. (As is my 10-bore...)

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig

The message
from Charlie Pridham contains these words:

Not having moles here, but is it possible to put barriers around? or do
they have to go too deep?

I buried corrugated iron and wire netting round a greenhouse, to a depth
of two feet. Within a couple of months they'd undermined all my tomatoes
and cucumbers.

Got a pair with moletraps, and another couple later with a 12-bore, as
they were making molehills.

I had thought that there was too much fuss made about moles on this
newsgroup until I visited my cousin up near Cambridge, they can not
safely walk across their garden its so undermined!

Yup. I had to keep my land clear of them for fear of the bullock
breaking a leg. The goats - er - took them in their stride...

I understand its a bit of a compliment to have moles as it means lots of
worms and good healthy soil :~)

Likewise nettles.

Aren't compliments fun?

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig

The message
from "Bob Hobden" contains these words:

We had them turn up right at the end of our tenure of our old allotment and
the little furry things dug right along a row of plants and undermined
them.
The plants suffered badly.
We now have them on our "new" allotment, presumably because there are now
worms there, we having manured the ground well, and we now have a couple of
children's windmills stuck in the ground to try to discourage them. It's an
on old trick which has appeared to stop them coming onto the plot where the
windmills are. Will have to purchase some more to keep the whole plot mole
free and they need turning into the wind as it changes so they keep
spinning
and vibrating.
I can only imagine what some of our "new" allotment gardeners think. :-)

I've never found them to work - nor bottles buried with just a couple of
inches of open neck above ground.

A field full of (frisky) horses is best - but the vegetables tend to
suffer a bit.

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig