skip to main content

New England Gardening

Voles or mice eating Shrub roots killing the shrubs

7 years ago

I have several shrubs (Fothergilla and Oakleaf Hydrangia) planted in beds of pachysandra and the roots of some of the shrubs have been completely eaten away by voles, mice or other rodents over the winter and spring. The shrubs have no roots at all. What is the best method of killing these rodents? I think they are likely voles. I have put chicken wire around some of the shrubs and this has protected them but it is not ideal because the chicken wire will eventually rot and then the problem returns. What about planting with granite dust mixed in the soil--will that help?

Featured Answer

mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)

7 years ago

Meet The Volinator in his natural habitat.

I don't really know how he manages to catch much of anything. But once he catches something, he tends to be very rough with his toys, so they break fairly quickly.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (6)

NHBabs z4b-5a NH
7 years ago
Let me know if you find a workable solution. I constantly battle voles, and have lost count of the shrubs they have killed. I planted 4 parsley plants 2 weeks ago and only 2 remain . . . holes mark where the others were, and last year they ate all my sweet potatoes and half my regular ones. I have tried various amounts of castor oil mixed with diluted urine (suggested on the hosta forum), underground wire mesh cages, and gravel mixed into the soil, all of which helped some. Spike traps and hot pepper mixed with water or oil didn't seem to make a difference. I've occasionally managed to nail one with a shovel. I've considered poison (I worry about the preditors, however, since I have no wish to harm them) and snap traps (though I haven't figured out a way to ensure that non-rodents don't get caught - perhaps put a weighted box over them to keep out birds or snakes.)
Lalala (zone 6b)
7 years ago
So frustrating. Here's some advice on how to use a covered snap trap box.

http://awaytogarden.com/garden-cleanup-targeting-mice-and-voles/
Related Discussions
What do YOU do for voles/field mice?
Q
Comments (51)
DH got rid of raccoons in my parents' chimney with ammonia. My mother kept hearing crying sounds from the chimney and people thought she was losing it. It turned out to be a litter of raccoons. DH set up cinder blocks/bricks to a spot as close as possible to the inside entrance of the chimney. On top of that, he placed a pie plate full of ammonia. They changed the ammonia every other day to keep the smell very strong. Sure enough, Mamma Raccoon removed her babies one by one. Then my parents had a chimney cap put on or something to keep them from returning. Of course, outdoors is different. But placing shallow containers of ammonia among the hostas would be worth a try. And has anyone tried Liquid Fence? It has worked very well for me and a lot of friends for deer, on hostas and shrubs. Of course, that is applied to foliage, not the roots voles eat.
...See More
killing voles
Q
Comments (35)
Denny, you brought back a horrible memory from childhood. Some friends and I dug out a big hole at the bottom of a hill and lined it with plastic. Then we put our Slip n Slide at the top of the hill and used the hole as a landing pool. When we wanted to dump the water, we pulled out the plastic and the water drained thru the rodent holes that we had unearthed. Well, out came several newborn baby gophers, I think. They soon died. Oh man, I felt horrible! I just don't like to see animals suffer when they die, even if they are a terrible pest. I don't even want to kill our chipmunks by mistake, though I suspect they are adding to the problem with their burrowing. I thought maybe the carbon monoxide would be fairly humane. Looks like I will be sticking with the protective cages and/or pots and just living with the voles.
...See More
Help!!! Some bugs are eating our plants' roots and killing them!!
Q
Comments (17)
Hello folks - thanks for shedding some light on this - if anything it makes me relieved to hear bugs may not be at play so I dont have to worry about stuff breeding etc lol. I dont think Clemson does soil testing here, but I heard something local from someone at work which I will follow up on. The sun has been the same every spring/ summer - no change there. We moved here 2 years ago during fall - they were growing fine then. Next summer I may not have watered them enough as I saw burn spots on the hydrangea leaves and some of them were big patches. Following fall I hired someone for some yard work and they said our hydrangeas/ rose etc. had grown a lot and needed trimming so they went ahead and trimmed everything to 2-3 feet. The spring after (this year) - these guys esp the hydrangeas have been growing like crazy with less flower output than last year. I have also been watering more regularly - although there are still some burn spots - not as bad as last summer. So that's about all the history I know about these guys ;-) Btw - I m worried the pyroligneous acid will kill useful soil bacteria/ bugs as well. And doesn't it go against the theory that bugs are not at play here? Thanks.
...See More
The war on shrub-eating rabbits
Q
Comments (10)
Not sure if you happened to notice that the original thread is 7 years old? The issue has rectified itself. The shrubs in question are over 10 feet tall now and the rabbits can chew away without issue. By the way, not being able to chew on one particular shrub isn't going to cause them to starve to death over the winter as there are a variety of plantings in my yard (if you would have read down thread, you would have noticed that). Even if I had no other plantings in my yard...everyone else around me does. Evidently there is no population/starvation issue considering the number of rabbits we see in our yard on a regular basis and have seen on a regular basis over the last 15 years that we've lived here. I get the impression that you think I don't care for wild animals and frankly, that is insulting.
...See More
H B
7 years ago
Total sympathies here, in the spring I go outsie and see what has fallen over from having all its roots eaten off. I am trying to reduce my acreage of pachysandra to discourage the chipmunk condo we have created, but I don't know how much difference it makes (with all the other lovely condo options around). Varmints!!!!
Thyme2dig NH Zone 5
7 years ago
Since I'm never sure quite which holes the voles may currently be active in, I buy about a dozen snap traps, baited with a tiny piece of pita bread and peanut butter and put them all around the holes I can find. We hadn't had any issues with other creatures being caught, but our snowshoe hare has gotten her big feet close to them. Nhbabs might have been the one who suggested a box on top, so I've been taking peat trays (the ones that usually hold six annuals) and putting those over the traps. I haven't been weighing them down. The snap traps seem to work pretty well. I've also found that surprisingly, if I only catch a couple voles there is soooooo much less damage in the garden. My voles are weird though as they don't seem to devour my roots. I have tunnels everywhere and when I catch a few, the tunnels go away. But I have not had the devastating plant loss as others here.
jackbe1
Original Author
7 years ago
Does anyone know of a poison that would kill the voles without harming other wildlife predators of the voles?

Related Stories

FALL GARDENING Why Fall Is the Best Time for Planting

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Spring is overrated for planting. Starting plants in autumn has advantages for both garden and gardener

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Sambucus Nigra

By Curtis Adams

Common elderberry is a highly adaptable shrub from the eastern U.S., with berries galore for wildlife and humans alike

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Grow Blueberries for Their Fruit and More

By Ellen Sousa/Turkey Hill Brook Farm

Eastern gardeners should consider growing blueberry plants for their delicious fruits, bee-friendly spring blooms and brilliant fall foliage

EDIBLE GARDENS Summer Crop: How to Grow Blueberries

By Marianne Lipanovich

Plant blueberries in spring or fall for garden beauty through three seasons — and a sweet superfood in summer

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Texas Ranger Explodes With Color

By Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

If purple is your passion, embrace Leucophyllum frutescens for its profusion of blooms and consider the unfussiness a bonus

PLANTING IDEAS These Aren’t Your Grandparents’ Junipers

By Jay Sifford Garden Design

Dislike junipers? Maybe it’s time to discover new varieties and new uses for this garden workhorse

GARDENING GUIDES Boxwood: Still Shape-Shifting After 350 Years

By Mary Jo Bowling

Wild or mild, the humble boxwood still brings style and order to all kinds of gardens

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Pride of Madeira

By Annie Thornton

Try this drought-tolerant stunner for its massive flower spikes that burst with purple, drawing butterflies and birds to the garden

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Taxus x Media ‘Hicksii’

By Jay Sifford Garden Design

Need a strong, silent type in your garden? Hicks yew may be your perfect match

GARDENING GUIDES Southeast Gardener's March Checklist

By Gardening with Confidence®

Start fresh by envisioning new plant combinations as you tend to fruit trees and rosebushes — and watch out for those darned voles

Sponsored

Dave Fox Design Build Remodelers

49 Reviews

Columbus Area's Luxury Design Build Firm | 17x Best of Houzz Winner!

More Discussions

Deer eating Ilex 'Blue Princess' holly berries?

3

David Austin roses in Massachusetts

46

Remember the Blizzard of '78?

10

Spring is happening eventually

4

Swamp Milkweed Seeds or cuttings

3