Kasie - I've tried the traps. I bought 2, and have set them each about 20x. Not one single gopher. I have found the "giant destroyer" brand bombs that seemed to be working, so I'm not giving up on gassing. The putzy red and black ones they've been stocking at HD and Lowes have been useless - I end up digging them up, un detonated. If (when...sigh...) this happens again, I will try to see if I can get rootstock to again produce roots - mostly as an experiment. I've tossed 2 of my losses: Angel Face - WILL replace, Tantalizing Red - will not replace, then Pink Peace had some tiny straggling roots left, and I chopped her down to about the relative size of her remaining roots leaving all the low leaves I could, and replanted her and am soaking her daily. She isn't dead yet... Caged 3 more roses last night after coming home from work - Bolero (missing all but a few feeder roots), Young Lycidas (whoppee - roots intact), and Intrigue (most roots intact). That now makes a total of 8 now caged. Just about 70 something to go. It's a good start. !

If protecting hostas you need to determine the mature size (width only) of the plant and figure the root system will likely be twice the size. If a hosta like some I grow are 4’ in diameter, some up to 6’. Others may only be 1’ or 2’ in width. Try to contact a reputable hosta nursery that grows all sizes in a trial borders and ask them about what the mature crown area will be and go out at least 1’ diameter more so they might not be able to reach the crown. But here is the issue, the holes need to be 1/4” or smaller, and they can just go down in the basket and eat away coming and going over the top. I would leave the top of the basket up about 2-3” so they sorta run into it but they can still just go over in. The best thing is to use traps NOT POISONING— it’s inhumane as they can take many hours to several days to die and they cause secondary poisoning to the very critters you need to eat them ie owls, hawks, even blue jays or other predator birds that will eat both fruits, berries and at certain times want protein sources. People forget even chickens (hens and roosters) will take great delight tracking down mice, etc and pulling them apart, fighting amongst themselves eating and chasing. Have personally seen this occur if one is stupid enough to go through the chicken area looking for eggs, grain, etc. 5-6 hens can be formidable predators and a rooster is the same with bigger prey like snakes, etc trying to invade his territory with those spurs. I have been hit with those too. A rooster that attacks people taking care of them ended up making stock and then great chicken and dumplings.

@KittyNYz6 - I've used a product that's similar with a castor oil base -- it deters moles for a couple of months, but did nothing to deter the gophers. Everything I value is planted in a gopher wire cage. Except one rose that was planted before I knew about cages and is now a massive rose on a slope, so I just pray gophers don't find it. And I have on citrus tree left that's not in a cage. I also learned the hard way that gophers will chew holes in ceramic pots, wood barrels, resin pots, and the thinner stainless steel gopher wire cages. The only thing that works for me is the much more sturdy gopher wire cage for individual plants and the "hardware cloth" (which is like chicken wire but with tiny holes) at the bottom of my raised beds. Good luck!

Being a gofor for my wife's business gives me a different prospective, but does not qualify me to answer this: Unless you put something down that is not easily broken, I do not see the mesh as any more deterrent to a gopher than the many small plant roots that he probably encounters as he goes about his day. From the human point of view, every time you plant something new you will have to cut through the mess to make the hole. This may be easier that plastic the previous owner of our house put down, but a problem just the same. Also when the weed roots become tangled in the mesh they will be much harder to pull.