Moles themselves are pretty cute creatures that don't bother anyone while they live in the wild. However, climbing into your summer cottage, they can cause great damage. Destroying moles can be a daunting task, especially in large areas. Sometimes it is not possible to lime the underground inhabitants on your own, then you have to turn to special services that deal with rodents professionally.
Have you seen moles
You need to know the enemy by sight. Sometimes a gardener digs new holes day after day and at the same time he never meets nocturnal animals. Outwardly, they resemble rats, but somewhat larger. They dig the ground and damage the roots, or they can drag root crops underground. This sometimes leads to the complete death of the crop. On the territory of Russia, the common, Caucasian and small mole lives. They live in gardens, meadows and fields. They spend almost their entire lives underground, and appear on the surface only at night. Grey, with powerful clawed feet and a pink nose, itcompletely blind. Moles feed on worms and larvae, beetles and various insects.
What attracts them to their summer cottage
Killing moles is not a necessity in the grasslands. Here they quite calmly maintain the optimal number of insects and loosen the ground. Every spring, moles breed, and the kids grow very quickly. In just a month, they reach the size of their parents. Why do they come to human territory? The garden is a true paradise. The earth is loose, fertilized, watered. At the same time, food is more than enough. Where there are many plants, there are also insects, larvae, worms and various insects.
By the way, thinking about the destruction of moles, do not forget that they are happy to devour mice that come to the site for carrots and other root crops and grains. At the same time, at their summer cottage, moles are not afraid of their natural enemies - forest predators. Now it is clear that moles will definitely try to settle in a summer cottage if it gets in the way. A person in this case begins to notice the convex loosened earth above the tunnels.
When to start fighting
A beginner gardener, noticing the first molehill, may decide that this creature will work as an orderly in his garden. This is a big mistake. The destruction of moles must be carried out as quickly as possible. They make their moves shallowly, and multiply very quickly. Soon the entire surface of the earth will be covered with hillocks, which will lead to the death of plantings.
It will be harder to get rid of a whole family than one or twoanimals, so do not pull. Each gardener decides for himself what to do with mole rats. They are chased away and poisoned, traps are set, holes are filled with poisonous smoke. Let's see which method is the most effective.
Prevention
The mole is not such a harmful creature. Destroying them by physical means is not an urgent need, so it is best to simply prevent them from entering the site. Contrary to the opinion of many gardeners, they do not eat root crops, although a passage dug under a bed of carrots can lead to the death of plants. So, even before the mole rats wandered into the site, you need to install sound repellers. Homemade turntables (noise makers) made from plastic bottles or tin cans are well suited for this. A metal pipe is dug into the ground, and a jar is put on top. Spinning in the wind, it knocks on the metal, which scares the moles.
A more advanced way is to dig into the ground jars containing inexpensive alarm clocks. They are set at different times and periodically checked to replace the batteries. Glass bottles can be installed along the perimeter of the site, which are buried in the ground at an angle of about 45 degrees, leaving the neck outside so that the wind blows into them. Additionally, it is recommended to plant a strip of legumes around the perimeter of the site and arrange timely measures to combat mice. It is considered a very effective way to enclose the entire perimeter with a metal mesh, which is dug in to a depth of 50-80 cm. Its top canact as a fence or just rise 10-20 cm.
If the mole is already in the area
All of the above methods involve scaring off those animals that just pass next to your site. If they seem convincing to him, then the mole will turn past and settle somewhere else. And if you already see dug moves? Do not forget that it is best to do so in order to avoid destruction. The mole can leave on its own, or, removing it from the ground, a humane gardener should simply take the animal away to the meadow, where to leave it.
Today, some summer residents use firecrackers. To do this, they are set on fire and thrown into the passages throughout the site. Not the best way, because the animal can get a severe concussion and as a result die within a day. Therefore, it is better to adopt folk methods.
Moles are very sensitive to smells
You can play well on this and completely painlessly scare away the animals. The destruction of moles on the site is a last resort. So, in order to scare off insectivorous animals, you need to buy the simplest fish, such as herring, and keep it in a warm place. When the fish is rotten, it is recommended to arrange it in small tin cans with holes and bury it in different places in the garden where there are molehills.
Garlic and camphor work in a similar way. Few animals can withstand such a sharp aroma. Garlic is cut into small pieces, mixed with camphor, afterthis mixture is placed directly into the wormhole. The destruction of moles in a summer cottage can be more radical. For example, carbide is laid in holes, which, when watered, will emit acetylene.
Physical violence
Mole slayers, mole traps and traps are a sure means of exterminating moles, but one can argue about its humanity. Some make homemade traps out of fishhooks, using worms as bait. Others simply install them in the aisles so that the animal stumbles upon the hooks. In this case, you provide him with a slow and painful death. This also applies to traps. It is much better to set a trap with bait. In this case, you can take the captured animal and release it into the wild.
Chemistry in our house
Today, there are many drugs that guarantee the destruction of moles on the site. Prices are very moderate, so summer residents often choose this method as one of the simplest and most effective. There are preparations that are recommended to be mixed with minced meat, while others have an attractive aroma themselves.
- Bait "Antikrot". This is a very powerful poison. You only need to carefully open the passage and put 15 g of bait into it. Now carefully cover the hole with soil. A sign of the eaten bait will be the absence of new activity, that is, holes. Cost - from 20 rubles for 30 g.
- Krotoboy pellets. This is an effective remedy that is readily eaten by pests. Usually moles find and eat it after twohours. Cost - about 25 rubles for 60 g.
If you entrust the matter to professionals
Not always listed methods lead to positive results. If you have tried everything, but the animals continue to walk around the site, you should invite a special team. In this case, you are guaranteed to receive a complete cleaning of the site. Professionals are well aware of the habits of animals, can evaluate abandoned and used burrows, and use special compounds that cause them to feel panic. I must say that this is also a humane "destruction" of moles. The price will, of course, be higher than for standard poisons. So, processing a plot of 5 acres will cost 6500 rubles, up to 10 acres - 8500 rubles. After deratization, the animals will bypass the site. Moreover, the effect persists for years.
Instead of a conclusion
Mole is not the most pleasant neighbor, but, on the other hand, not such a malicious pest. Therefore, I would like to appeal to summer residents so that they do not adopt methods such as the use of traps and fishing hooks. Moles are not so to blame that many tasty larvae live under your lawn. And if you notice the first mole passage, go to the site in the morning dawn. At this time, the animal can be caught at the exit from the mink. Then you can just pry it off with a quick movement of a shovel, take it away and let it go free.
