Moles Underfoot

February 12, 2005

By Mary Giambalvo, Master Gardener

The mole is a mysterious fellow. He spends most of his life just under the surface of our lawns and gardens, seldom showing himself to us. What does he do down there? Should we be as concerned about his antics as we are with that of his neighbor, the gopher?

Scapanus, the mole, is a very small, pointy-nosed mammal that belies his tiny size by bulldozing through entire gardens, leaving behind a long telltale ridge of soil where yesterday sprouted tender plants and smooth lawns.

Moles, surprisingly, are not rodents, have poor vision and no obvious ears. They are built primarily for tunneling and eating and producing one spring litter a year.

Worms and insects are the mole’s favorite dining fare. He generally does not eat plant material; however, he can occasionally nibble on some roots and bulbs. The most common damage he does to plants is to disturb their root systems and make them lose contact with their food and water sources. Plants can dry out rather quickly after a mole raid.

As annoying as his disfigurement of the landscape is, the mole is not as devastating to gardens as is the gopher that devours greenery.  Still, we'd prefer he not uproot our plants and make lumpy our lawns.

Although the mole will have a network of tunnels deeper underground, he does his feeding just under the surface. Sometimes it is possible to watch the soil rise as he burrows along. A stealthy, swift shovel can often expose him and finish him off.  Mole traps are also available for the determined in garden shops and farm supply stores. They come with directions on how and where to set the trap.  Our current score, though, is: shovel, 3; trap, 1.

Moles rampant in a lawn suggests that grubs are present. Often, getting rid of the grubs will discourage moles and make them move on to new feeding grounds.

Meanwhile, we can contemplate the mysterious life teeming beneath our feet and marvel that, for the most part, we do coexist quite well.

For more detailed information on the mole’s habitat and types of traps available, please contact Master Gardeners and ask for Pest Note 74115.

University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener Volunteers can provide additional gardening information upon request .Call the San Luis Obispo office at 781-5939 on Mondays and Thursdays from 1 to 5 PM. You may also call the Paso Robles office at 237-3100 on Wednesdays from 9 AM to 12 PM. The San Luis Obispo Master Gardeners website is at http://groups.ucanr.org/slomg/. Questions can be e-mailed to: mgsanluisobispo@ucdavis.edu.