Hi Pat and all,
Here's what I learned about voles yesterday from an avid Hosta collector. Voles are voracious eaters in the spring. You can make poison balls to put down their holes. This is what you will need:
Heavy duty rubber gloves
Heavy duty plastic bags
Plastic container for mixing (that you can throw away)
Rat Poison in a bar form
Cheap Peanut Butter
Put the rat poison in a plastic bag and bang with a hammer or mallet until it is very crumbled. Mix crumbled poison together with cheap peanut butter.
Break off pieces and roll into balls like little meatballs.
Stuff balls into vole holes.
You can freeze the unused poison balls if you do not have children around and clearly mark the container.
Saftey precaution: Wear heavy duty rubber gloves at all times. Do not use any utensils that will later come in contact with food. Preferably work in an area that will not come in contact with food (garage? shed?) Dispose of any containers that were in contact with the poison.
Stan also told me that he has great luck in the fall with the clay pot/trap/peanut butter method that was in my previous post. When I explained my dilemma about taking voles out of the traps he told me that he disposes of the whole thing, trap & vole. Traps are sold cheap, in multiple packs at the supermarket.
Good luck and let me know your favorite way to eliminate voles!
Melanie
