How to Get Rid of Moles in Your Yard

Nothing ruins a lawn or garden like molehills. Fortunately, you can do something about moles and their holes.

We have tried every product we could find to get rid of moles in our yard – and just when I think I’ve solved the problem, they come back with a vengeance. What can I do? -Theresa

Just when you think you’ve gotten your yard to the pinnacle of neatness, here comes a pesky mole to turn your lawn into a superhighway!

Unfortunately, we gardeners are excellent mole-magnets: our tilling, mulching, and watering create a virtual paradise for these burrowing critters who love nothing more than a nice, moist, earthworm-rich hunting ground.

About Moles

Here are some facts about our furry mole friends (or enemies):

Trapping can be effective against moles.

How to Eliminate Moles

Unfortunately, moles aren’t easily dealt with. Unless your yard is really showing damage, the best approach is to leave moles alone. They’ll usually move on once they’ve eliminated their food source. You can keep your lawn in shape by flattening the runways with your feet or a lawn roller, or by raking out the tunnels.

If you do have damage from moles, here are some tips on mole control:

• Determine if Moles Are Active: To test mole activity in your yard, go out and stomp down the existing molehills. Then, watch each day to see if the mole pushes them back up again.
• Forget Grub Control: The popular wisdom used to be, that to get rid of moles, you must get rid of grubs. That theory’s been pretty much disproven, since moles eat many other insects besides grubs, and if they can’t find food, they tunnel all the more.
• Trapping Moles: If you really want to get rid of the moles in your yard, the only surefire way is to trap them. Follow trap directions exactly, because improper placement of the trap will doom your efforts! While you can’t control whether or not new moles will move in, trapping lets you know for sure that you’ve eliminated the ones you have. Before you begin, make sure mole trapping is legal in your state.
• Home Mole Remedies: Human hair, broken glass, mothballs, bleach, thorny branches, car exhaust . . . the list of homemade mole remedies is endless, but the list of results are nonexistent, so save your time and money.
• Ultrasonic and Vibrating Devices: These clever gizmos are popular marketing ploys, but they don’t work either.
• Mole Fumigation: Poison gas fumigation is very iffy, because the runways are so extensive and the gases are so easily absorbed in the loose soil or vented to the surface. If you do want to try fumigation, hire a professional exterminator who can do it properly.
• Mole Poisons: Poisons are also iffy and like fumigants, should be applied by a trained professional to keep you safe. Wormlike baits can work if applied properly. Don’t be fooled by grain-based baits and poison peanuts, moles are insectivores and don’t have the right teeth for gnawing.

Lawn damaged by moles.

Mole Resistant Landscaping

The best way to declare a cease-fire with moles is to change your landscaping:

• Shrink Your Lawn: Lawns are the most susceptible to mole damage. If your area is eternally overrun with moles, consider replacing all or part of your lawn with naturalized areas and shrub plantings.
• Reduce Watering: Overwatering saturates the soil, inviting earthworms and moles to the surface. Cut back on irrigating your lawn, and choose drought-tolerant grasses and plants.
• Go Native: Native plants are less damage-prone and require less water than imported varieties.
• Keep Moles Out: Protect your raised beds from moles and other critters by lining them (including the sides) with 1/4? metal hardware cloth. You can also try a mole barrier around the perimeter of your yard. Hardware cloth or sheet metal should be buried at least two feet deep and should stick up about six inches.
• Natural Predators: Moles aren’t really a popular predator snack (they apparently don’t taste very good), but your dog or cat might enjoy hunting them or scaring them off.

Further Information