Voles like dense heavy vegetative cover weeds and meadows because it provides them with protection from predators and provides nesting material.
Voles in yard signs.
Since voles are not the only animal pests responsible for runways in lawn and garden areas they are often confused with other pests you d like to get rid of namely moles because both moles and voles are rarely seen it makes more sense to base identification on the signs they leave behind rather than on how the animals look.
As they spend a lot of time in their subterranean burrows infestations of voles in the yard tend to go unnoticed until plants begin dying which is the result of the pests consuming their root systems and a sign that a large number of the animals are present.
Look for irregular paths of clipped and trampled grass or soil.
Vole droppings and vegetation debris within surface runways.
Make your yard inhospitable to voles.
The tell tale sign that you have a mole infestation is not seeing the mole itself but the presence of small volcano shaped mounds and raised ridges of dirt in your yard.
Bury 1 4 inch hardware cloth in an 18 inch trench and tilt the bottom 4 inches at a 90 degree angle away from the yard to discourage animals from tunneling underneath it.
Small tunnel entrances runways and burrows in your yard ranging from 1 2 wide.
However in your yard they ll also destroy plant roots bulbs and grass.
How to recognize vole activity in your garden.
You have to pinpoint the location of your voles to be most effective with your repellent methods.
Cut back brush mow weed and create a clean space.
The track will be 1 2.
Learn to verify signs of voles and how to identify hot spots of vole activity with the apple sign test.
Moles naturally aerate soil and eat the larvae of destructive insects.
Voles are often the culprit when there is damage to plants and lawns.
Signs of voles in the yard.
Signs of vole damage.
Prevention is very important to keep vole numbers down.
The grass immediately surrounding the hole will be very short.
The best way to find these pesky creatures is by looking for signs of vole damage.
If you already have voles in your yard this type of barrier can keep them out of your flower gardens.
Common signs of vole damage include.
The runways may be about one to two inches wide.
A positive apple sign test will indicate where to place a vole control bait station system to gain control of the area.
Voles like to keep these often used runways clear and will keep the grass or other vegetation clipped close to the ground.
An underground barrier around the perimeter of your yard can do just that.
Once you have all the information you need you can develop a targeted strategy toward preventing further damage and removing them from your yard altogether.
A vole s burrow can be identified by holes found in lawns or around the base of trees.
Vole runways are on the top of the soil created in the grass.