Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Smallhold Farming and Rural Living => Livestock and Growing on a larger scale => Topic started by: nuzuki on February 01, 2012, 21:04
-
I have a paddock just under 2 acres in size and it appears to have little holes all over it and cracks in the soil a bit like the arizona salt lakes. These holes are about 1inch diameter maximum. Is this a warning that I have field mice in the area? Is there a way to get rid of them? Our jack russell goes mad when I take him out there, He sniffs the holes and starts digging franticly. I was thinking of setting up a few mouse traps just to see?
In the not to distant future I would like to grow some veg on the land and from my past experience mice have been a real problem.
Anyone got any advice?
Thanks
-
You need to learn to live with them, there are worse things in the garden. :)
-
could also be rats or weasels etc..
-
Good point, my immediate thought was mice but could be something else. There is a drainage ditch running alongside the paddock and across the road there is a stream/river so it would definitely be a suitable home for most wildlife. If im growing vegetables is it worth putting small holed mesh fencing around my plots?
-
Have to be very small mesh to keep mice out --- and then they would dig their way in I suspect anyway :unsure:
-
as you are next to a waterway I would say rats, you could either drop poison blocks down the holes or get some rat traps.
-
All our veg plots are claimed from agricultural land and its a constant battle to to keep nature at bay but have leaned to live with it.
I totally disagree with attempted poisoning of any unidentified foe,these holes,maximum diameter of 1 inch,are in my opinion ,too small for active populations of rats so any form of control should be avoided until you know for certain what you are dealing with.
smud6ie
-
I have set 2 mouse traps in the last 24hours and caught 4 mice with them but this was by the door of the barn next to the paddock. So its looking like mice but I have a larger trap which I shall bait and leave out tonight to see if we catch a rat.
-
The holes sound to me like they belong to voles, which many people confuse with mice. They're cute little creatures but not really ideal on a veg plot as they are purely vegetarian. This means that they'll love your carrots, beetroot, Jerusalem artichokes, and various other things. It also makes them difficult to catch in traps as they won't go for the same things that people often use as bait. Owls love them, and so do cats, so get a few cats :lol:
-
I managed to get some pictures of the holes in the field.
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i220/hornyhonda/Smallholding/DSCN4871.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i220/hornyhonda/Smallholding/DSCN4870.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i220/hornyhonda/Smallholding/DSCN4869.jpg)
Here is my mouse catcher/scarer
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i220/hornyhonda/Smallholding/DSCN4867.jpg)
He goes mad when he gets taken for a walk round the paddock. He sniffs every hole with a wagging tail. Does anyone know if the presence of a dog is enough for them to move on or does he actually have to catch them?
Thanks
-
No, I doubt they'll be worried enough to move out even if he catches a few. There are probably hundreds of them out there. Here's a picture of the little blighter :D
http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Field_Vole (http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/life/Field_Vole)