What is more useful or harmful from it?
Enough is known about the life of moles to understand who they are, enemies or friends. Animals live underground, in the dark. This is their natural habitat. So nature wanted them to move quickly and accurately navigate in the dark, thanks to excellent hearing, a strong sense of smell and touch. These natural qualities enable moles to find food. Despite the fact that the animals themselves are not large (up to fifteen centimeters long and weighing up to about one hundred and fifty grams), they eat food equal to their weight during the day. They gnaw everything that comes across their path: roots, plant tubers, bugs, wireworms, butterfly caterpillars, and destroy newborn rats and mice. They feast on such malicious pests of plantings as mole crickets. And yet, moles do more harm than good. Firstly, they damage the roots and tubers of plants and they die. They destroy earthworms, which we, on the contrary, try to multiply so that they loosen and improve the soil. Moles can chew through plastic pipes and wiring if they get in the way.And how much damage these animals cause to lawns! And one more important fact about the pestilence of these rodents. Mole holes are a very convenient place for rats and mice to raise their young. There is no need to dig shelters yourself. Therefore, it would be fairer to classify moles as pests rather than helpers. And yet, environmentalists call for sorting things out with them without drastic measures. And many gardeners succeed in this.
Spring frustrations of summer residents
With the onset of spring, there’s already “a cart and a small cart” in the garden. And then there are waste heaps of earth dug up by moles. Lawns and beds are dug up. Is it possible to calmly look at heaps of earth in flower beds with your favorite perennials!? The owners immediately begin to fight the invasion of these indomitable pests.
... But the hearing is good
They say that moles are blind. It turns out not to be the case. Just because they live underground doesn’t mean they can’t see at all. They have eyes. It's just that my vision is very weak. This has been proven. Among the thick hair, it is very difficult to find the eyes of a mole. Difficult, but possible. They are narrow slits hidden in a thick mole coat. If you pick up this animal and carefully examine it, you can be sure that the mole’s eyes are real. Many summer residents have already been convinced of this by lying in wait in their garden and examining the unwanted guest. Moreover, these underground scouts are not very timid. Despite their poor eyesight, they have good hearing. They are only afraid of strong vibration and ultrasound. But this only helps under certain conditions.
We are looking for a weak point in moles
How to protect your site from the invasion of these persistent rodents?
Some summer residents see salvation in tin cans placed at the top of the house on an ordinary stick or metal pin.Someone hopes to scare away aliens with the strong smells of aromatic herbs. And some people trust only industrial repellent devices.
And yet, with poor eyesight, moles have very good hearing, smell and touch. Therefore, they cannot tolerate vibration or ultrasound. The sense of smell helps them in searching for food. Knowing these characteristics of animals, summer residents come up with ways to protect themselves from them.
"Bryakalki" and "Stinkers"
Remember when we mentioned tin cans as a way to get rid of moles? Unfortunately, according to summer residents, this method is ineffective. And some, according to their experience, claim that it is not effective at all.
Someone, disappointed in the cup protection, decided to try to influence the sense of smell of annoying animals. Their sense of smell is much sharper than their vision. But no pungent-smelling or aromatic herbs produced the expected effect. Even gasoline and kerosene gags, stuffed into holes and scattered around the garden, did not stop the attacks of moles. They simply walked around them and dug molehills nearby. And the corrosive smell is more likely to survive from the gardens of the owners and neighbors themselves.
Another “folk” way to fight moles is beans. Someone suggested, someone advised. But, most likely, he himself did not even try to test this weapon on his site. It’s a shame, but the beans also turned out to be ineffective in the fight against dacha infiltrators. Some gardeners have all their beds and potato plantings planted with beans. And what? Everything is mercilessly dug up by these malicious and invincible explorers!
But still…
You can use a commercial electronic repellent device. It emits impulses that animals cannot tolerate. They leave the occupied territory and take their families away.The device does not harm organisms living in the earth and is harmless to humans and the environment. But not all “lucky” owners of mole excavations can purchase the device. After all, moles feel and hear only at a distance of up to two meters in a radius from themselves. They will leave such a small area. But how many devices do you need for the entire site? They need to be arranged so that there is no space left free from ultrasound. If there is even a small loophole, there will be new molehills. It is better to talk with a sales consultant about the effectiveness and correct use of electronic barriers.
There is nothing more reliable than simple
This is about tin cans. All the summer residents who were not helped or helped poorly by the “blinkers” did not use them quite correctly. Firstly, they need to be placed on nothing but metal pins. It is clear that this is necessary to extract a piercing, annoying sound that is unbearable for animals from the device. They need to be spaced one and a half, two meters apart from each other, at least. For homemade repellers to work smoothly, you need to bend the bottom of the can outward. After all, in its original state it is concave inward. Then the pin on which the can is placed will not cling and get stuck. At the slightest breeze, the jar will make a nasty, annoying sound (from the experience of a summer resident). Moles will run away not only from this unbearable sound for them, but also from the vibration coming from the metal trunk. Of course, the owners of the site have to choose - a garden plowed by moles and dead plants, or an annoying metallic ringing. We'll have to be patient. If this music is turned off, then guests, motivated by silence, will not hesitate to return.
According to a professional
To eliminate moles, according to ecologist Zhukov, all the above methods are completely useless and worthless. He is confident that ordinary mole traps, proven over the years, are the surest weapon against moles. But this is a radical, cruel way of dealing with shrews. Fortunately (or unfortunately), there are currently many mole traps and they almost all kill animals. But some of them are designed like traps. Once captured, the animal remains alive. He can be freed and taken to the forest. Let him work as a nurse.
By the way, Zhukov has his own humane way of getting rid of these pests. Moles, as it turns out, dig tunnels in two tiers. One at a depth of up to 30 centimeters to escape drought in the hot summer. But during rains, earthworms rise to the surface, and moles rise after them. Worms are their main food. Thus, animals, in search of food, dig tunnels closer to the surface. You need to go through all these moves and trample them. The mole will definitely begin to restore the fruits of his labor. This is where you need to watch. As soon as he resumes his moves about two meters away, you need to quickly go with a shovel to the place from where he began to recover. Stomp about a meter of raised earth. The mole will quickly return and begin to restore the trench again. That's their instinct. This is where you need to stick a shovel in front of him at the full bayonet and turn it to the side (left or right). The animal will end up on the surface. You just need to have time to catch him. You need to do this quickly, otherwise it will slip away.
There are not so many ways to fight moles, and even more effective ones. But, if you follow the advice of professionals on how to combat these rodents and the successful experience of summer residents, moles can still be evicted from the garden.
