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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Voles

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  • From: Vern and Amy <vaspencer AT sisna.com>
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Voles
  • Date: Sun, 01 Apr 2012 21:04:09 -0700

  I don't have any experience with voles, but I do with trapping gophers, which requires the right kind of traps and techniques, and they learn real fast if you make mistakes! 
    The local exterminator uses tablets that he pokes into tunnels with a tool and the moisture in the ground turns the tablets into a gas that is heavier than air, so stays in the tunnels and sinks to the gopher's dens.  I believe it suffocates them and doesn't leave any residue for other animals to be secondarily poisoned by.  We don't use this as it is prohibited for organic production.

Alex McGregor asked me to post this next piece.

Hi. I'm sending this to you instead of the list because I can't post (only receive) since I changed my email address.

Anyway, I've been plagued with them for years. I've tried everything- smoke, exhaust fumes, traps (Black Hole & others) and there's 3 cats that hunt the veggie growing area. Nothing has helped. And I won't use poison so we don't poison cats, hawks & owls.

Then this winter a neighbor said she had good luck trapping them- caught 7 in 10 days. The way to poison them is to put pellets under a roof shingle or wide board. They burrow up to dark places at the surface. She put a mouse trap under an inverted large clay pot and put something over the hole to block light. She baited the traps with pecan halves.

I'll be setting some of these- bought a six pack of traps at Hardware to test- when we start transplanting next week.

Good Luck and may The Force be with you!

Alex McGregor
Walden Farm

P.S. You can forward this to the list if you think it's worth it, or let us know your results if you try it.




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