How to Win the War Against Gophers!

Gophers are persistent creatures that can do a LOT of damage to your yard, garden, orchard, and shrubbery in a VERY short period of time. If you think you can kill them all, I’m sorry to deliver bad news. You can only control them, and keep them out of areas around your place.

There are different types of gophers, but they have similar habits of burrowing tunnels under the ground, with disturbances at the surface for either excavating soil to allow them to dig more, or when they find an area with food to eat and they come near the surface to eat plant material. They are very cautious creatures that can feel a slight vibration in the ground and will go deeper into their runways at the first perception of danger.

WARNING! This episode is going to show you some of the most effective ways to KILL the gopher and possible other citizens in the den. Females raise young (birthed usually in the spring), and tend to be more communal. Males are very territorial and solitary but will dig into other burrows in search of a female to mate with.

Our “go-to” methods for eliminating gophers in a given area are gas-emitting cartridges. However, there are also baits, in-tunnel traps, and exposed tunnel box traps. There are trade-offs for each - watch the video for more detail.

Whatever method you use, you’ll need to locate where the tunnels or “runs” are below the surface. Fortunately, gophers give you clues in the form of a fan-shaped mound of soil. Gophers dig in a fairly predictable pattern. The run is NOT usually under this mound, but off to the side about 10 to 12 inches, perpendicular to the center of the mound, across from the narrower side.

Once the tunnel is exposed, you will have an opening to the tunnel on both sides of the hole you’ve dug (about 8 to 16 inches deep). You can now choose what method you’d like to use.

HERE’S ONE THING YOU DON’T DO! Ignore them. Bad idea!

Why? They are very active and will continue to grow their population and the amount of digging they do. When it looks like they are gone over the winter, they aren’t. They’ve only gone deeper, only to surge forward with activity come warmer weather. Sometimes they’ll come near to the surface as well and dig a tunnel right where the snow and soil meet, and this activity will be exposed as the snow melts off.

Traps give more immediate feedback because the gopher carcass is there to show tangible results. Traps also can attract other animals to eat the gopher, or the trap may be drug back into the tunnel in some cases.

Baits and the smoke bomb control and bury the gopher in one step, keeping the gopher underground, where there is much less chance of secondary poisoning. Verification of the kill is slower, and indication of success is the cessation of activity and damage.

Thanks for watching! If you have an opinion or insight to offer, do so below in the comment section. If you have an idea for a video episode and we use it, we’ll be sure to give you on-screen mention for it.

Видео How to Win the War Against Gophers! канала DirtFarmerJay