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Damage to Lawns and Gardens Caused by Moles and Voles

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We are most familiar with moles, which are mouse-like creatures that can do so much damage to your lawn. What about voles? Well, their names might sound alike, and voles are also often mistaken for moles. These creatures, however, are different from each other. Whereas voles are rodents, moles are not. They also have different characteristics and food preferences. But both animals can wreak havoc to your garden and lawns.

The Mole – How It Destroys Grounds

Moles are insectivorous. This means that they won’t eat your precious tulip bulbs. Instead, they’ll feed on insect larvae, grubs, and earthworms. So, how do they cause damage to your yard? It is seldom to see moles crawling on the grass. They are always underneath the ground. These creatures create tunnels that they use to get to food sources. Oftentimes, moles create berms or mounded hills when forming their runways. So, while going on their merry way in search for their favorite worms, they also spoil your lawn.

The Vole and the Damage It Causes

Unlike moles, voles are vegetarians. They target seeds, bulbs, and roots. When food is scarce, such as during winter time, it’s also pretty common for voles to eat shrubs and tree bark. Because they like plants, they can cause considerable damage to gardens. Your prized plants are surely not safe if there are voles around. Just imagine all of your hard work going down the drain once voles start snacking on your precious dahlias or your succulent tomatoes. Won’t that make you feel really frustrated?

Voles can make tunnels if they need to. However, they often choose the easy way, and that is exploiting the tunnels that have been created by moles. In case they choose to build underground runways, they do not create berms. Nevertheless, they produce damage under the ground, which could also weaken the integrity of the top soil.

Keeping Out Moles and Voles

Voles

1. Keep grounds well-maintained.

Voles are attracted to lush vegetation, and they grow particularly emboldened when there are tall grasses or deep mulch that keeps them hidden. So, one way to discourage these critters is by ensuring that your lawn is maintained well. Mow grass regularly, and get rid of weeds. When putting mulch, keep the layer thin and not too deep.

2. Wrap tree trunks in metal wires.

Because voles eat bark, it’s best to protect the base of trees. Get some metal wires or mesh wires and put these around the bark of trees. Also, keep mulch and dense vegetation away from the base of trees.

3. Use traps and other methods to eradicate voles.

You can use humane mice traps to catch voles. There are also poisons and other substances that can be used to repel or kill voles.

Moles

1. Control the insect population in your garden.

Since moles are attracted to all sorts of worms and insects, be sure to keep the insect population in your lawn under control. By keeping their food sources scarce, they won’t be encouraged to live in your lawn or to go back to your garden every time they’re hungry.

2. Utilize traps to capture moles.

There are all sorts of traps that you can use, such as harpoon, scissors or choker mole traps. If you prefer a more humane way to get rid of moles, check out the Havahart traps, which are live trapping devices. But you have to be find a place far from your property where you can release the animal you’ve trapped.

Final Note

Critters pose a problem and a challenge to most homeowners. If you want to get rid of pests but you don’t know how, consult a professional. Experts will suggest what sort of methods you can use. They can also propose eco-friendly and safer options so that you won’t have to expose yourself, your kids and your pets to dangerous chemicals.

Attached Images:
  •  License: Creative Commons – Hackworth. “Bloody moles! 3 September 2007”. September 3, 2007. Online image. Flickr. December 5, 2012. image source

Claire Lassiter is a freelance writer who frequently blogs about pest management. She covers many topics, including rodents, roaches, stinging pests, and other damaging bugs. She provides material for Rove Pest Control, a company that specializes in eradicating several kinds of destructive pests.






Smart and Cheap Solutions to Cut Off Lawn Deluge

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When rains pour, they can bring several problems that are sometimes difficult to deal with. One in particular that frustrates a lot of homeowners is the runoff that goes directly on their lawns. This happens when rain falls so fast or heavily that the ground cannot absorb water at once.


Storm water runoff poses a number of serious issues. For one, it can cause soil erosion, and the the dirt, grass clippings and other debris it scours from the lawn carry pollutants to bodies of water. These things can affect marine habitat by blocking sunlight, which in turn promotes the growth of algae that feeds on the oxygen that supports aquatic life. In areas where sanitary and storm sewers are combined, storm water runoff can overwhelm sewers, causing basement overflows and backups.

If you leave in a low-lying area, your lawn and home are particularly at risk of being damaged by storm water runoff. So to avoid watery disasters down the road and prevent paying expensive storm water management fees in the future, here are simple and frugal solutions you can do today to keep that pesky runoff at bay.

Attach rain barrels to downspouts

A rain barrel is typically tied into a downspout to collect rainwater coming down the roof. The water can then be reused for watering plants, cleaning the driveway and washing cars. While you can easily purchase new rain barrels at your local home improvement store, which may cost anywhere from a $100 or more, you can save some cash if you make them on your own.

Containers such as wine and whiskey barrels and gallon drums make for great rain barrels. You can buy them for a couple of dollars at local food distributors, car wash stalls and local vineyards. Or, if you have a nice neighbor you may even get them for free. To turn them into rain barrels, you can search over the Internet for step-by-step instructions from DIYers who also made their own rain barrels. With a little elbow greasing, not only will you prevent runoff from damaging your lawn and home, you also get to help the environment by reusing rainwater.

Build a rain garden or berm

If you love gardening, one of the best things you can do to collect and clean storm water runoff is to create a rain garden. A rain garden is a collection of native plants that are strategically placed in slight depressions to collect runoff. It is designed to contain water long enough so that it percolates into the soil, where it is filtered. Native plants are recommended for this type of garden because they require minimal upkeep and do not necessarily need fertilizers. Native plant species that have large root system are a great choice since they absorb rainwater pretty well.

Another great way to put your gardening skills into good use to control runoff is to create berms on your lawn. A berm is simply a tiny hill that is covered with grass or other plantings, which will divert water around the area that you want to protect. Before you build berms, you need to have a clear plan as to where you want the runoff to flow and what type of plant to use. Although grass is a great option, maintaining grass berms can be time-consuming since you need to mow them from time to time. You can check your local nursery to find other plantings that are easier to maintain and will blend well into your landscape.

Intercept water by creating a swale or French drain

You can intercept rainwater by adding a swale–a shallow ditch with sloping sides – or a French drain– a trench with a perforated pipe at the bottom and then filled with gravel–on your lawn. Any of the two are great DIY projects you can finish over the weekend. Just make sure that before you start digging, you find a good site where the drainage will be added to avoid ruining your landscape.

Pay special attention to your lawn

Aside from the ones mentioned above, paying special attention to how you attend to the upkeep needs of your lawn can do a great deal in reducing runoff. Things such as leaving grass clippings on your lawn, mowing your turf high (preferably to a height of 2 to 3 inches), washing your car on the lawn instead of the driveway, doing soil test and periodically aerating your lawn can help you manage runoff and prevent the damage it can do to your property and the environment.

This piece of home and garden improvement advice was written by one of the regular contributors of McIntyre Masonry, a family-run stonemasonry company in Edinburgh that provides a full range of services related to stonework, including structural alterations, chimney repairs, boundary wall restoration and build and lime mortar pointing.

How To Prepare Your Garden For Winter

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As the days become shorter and the weather cooler, you know winter is not far away. Your thoughts will turn to what you need to do to prepare your garden for winter.

General Gardening Tasks

Weeding is a never-ending job. It is important to remove as many as possible before winter, otherwise you will have rampant weed growth in spring. Many weeds respond better to weed-killer applications now than at other times of the year.

Putting down a thick layer of mulch will suppress weeds and protects the roots of plants. Much of the mulch layer protection comes from providing more even temperatures that make sure roots are not stressed from an on-going cycle of freezing and thawing. It is best to wait until the ground is getting colder to do this in order to discourage any mice from making their winter homes in the mulch.

Autumn is the ideal time to plant new shrubs and trees. Autumn and winter allow strong root growth to develop. The new plantings should be well established before the hot dry days on summer arrive.

As the leaves fall put them on your compost pile as they convert to great organic matter.

Any potted houseplants which have been outdoors will need to be moved back inside. This process should be done in a two-step process to order to protect them from climate shock. Give them a few days is a shed or garage before bringing them into the house.

If your area is susceptible to heavy frosts make sure you disconnect any garden hoses. This is to make sure fittings do not split due to frozen water.

Grass will have a head-start in spring if work is done to remove weeds such as dock. An application of a specialised lawn fertiliser now will also lead to lusher growth in the new growing season.

Flower Garden

If any plants are looking unhealthy or diseased this is an ideal time to dispose of them. Put these plants in the rubbish rather than putting them on the compost pile.

This is also the time to plant out any bulbs. Most bulbs need the winter chill so that they flower as expected the following spring.

Winter annuals can be planted before the soil temperature gets too cold. If you are well prepared then you can plant out seeds. However, the potted seedlings will probably have a better success rate. Good flowers for winter colour are pansies and stock.

It is good to cut perennials back, but do not do this before the plant heads into its winter dormancy. The plant needs to transfer energy through to its roots for the winter lay-over and if cut back too early, this won’t be able to happen.

Vegetable Garden

The vegetable garden becomes a lot less busy over winter. Pull out any old plants before winter so any eggs laid by insect pests don’t hitch a ride through to spring. This old plant matter can be worked directly back into the soil to improve the soil condition.

If you have winter crops planted such as parsnips, broccoli or leeks, they will benefit from staying in the ground. The winter temperatures convert natural sugars in these plants making them tastier.

Attached Images:
  •  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://photodune.net/licenses/photo
  •  License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://photodune.net/licenses/photo

These tips were brought to you by Luis Simmons and Rhodium (rh-45.com) – Luis is a property blogger from London and loves to share is home improvement and interior design ideas.

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