Stewart Clark’s Plan of Attack
I was out of town for a week and now, after a week to observe the latest mole activity in my yard, I am ready to place my traps out this weekend. I have 8 Deadset® mole traps and some Victor® Poison Peanuts and Victor® Poison Moleworms™.
I have invested 80 dollars this season for my additional 3 traps and some bait. I will be able to use the traps every season, so I see it as an investment. Moles can always return at any time.
Trapping will allow me to be sure that I am making progress. I use baits as well because the combination has worked for me in the past.
I have taken this past week to truly determine that the runs that have appeared in the past few weeks are actively being used day to day.
I have three target spots that I will attack.
Common Questions About Moles…
Do I treat mounds? Why do I have mounds instead of surface runs?
Great Questions.
- When I encounter a mound I feel the dirt at the top. If it is soft and moist I know that it is fresh. I then brush a bit of it away and poke my finger down thru the hole. I brush off the top few inches of loose soil. I will return tomorrow and the next day to see if it is still being used. Remember: Mounds occur because the mole is unable to deposit the soil anywhere else and the surface is too dry just to “push up” a tunnel roof.
- I throw in Victor® Poison Peanuts and a Poison Moleworm into the hole below the mound when I find one. I am certain that the use of baits while trapping improves my eradication plan.
- Surface tunnels that are fresh and long are what I am really looking for. I have found three this week and when I poked a hole and looked to the main tunnel it felt moist. Each of my tunnel holes was closed up when I inspected them 24 hours later. I am certain that my mole is very actively using these runs on a daily basis.
Now I am ready to place my traps. First, let me let me share some tricks of the Mole trapping trade.
Deadset Trap Placement Tips and Tricks
- Minimum of 3 traps per mole run
- Totally excavate the 6 to 8 inches where the trap will be placed
- Make sure the “walls of the run” at both entrances to the trap are packed down (The mole will approach the blocked tunnel and we want to encourage the mole to tunnel forward thru the loose soil below the trigger instead of tunneling around the trap.)
- Place the trap into the excavated run deep enough to make sure that the trigger will activate when the mole attempts to dig thru the loose soil that we will place in the excavated section of the mole run.
- Test fire the trap and lubricate with WD-40 if needed. Spears should penetrate easily.
- A bag of topsoil is useful to use to as the back fill material once the trap is placed in the excavated mole run (It helps to regrow grass and is good for the yard too!)
Learn more about mole control options on VictorPest.com.
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