You spend all spring planting beautiful hostas, ornamental grasses, and expensive bulbs. Then, one day in June, you notice a plant looking wilted. You reach down to touch it, and the entire plant topples over in your hand. The base looks like a sharpened pencil. There are no roots left.

You have just met the Vole.

Voles (with a “V”) are often confused with Moles (with an “M”), but they are completely different animals with different diets. Moles are insectivores that eat worms and help aerate the soil. Voles are rodents—specifically, meadow mice—and they are vegetarians. They are the silent killers of Louisville gardens.

Identifying the Vole

Voles look like field mice but with shorter tails, smaller ears, and blunter noses. They are small, fast, and prolific breeders. A single female can produce up to 10 litters a year.

Signs of Vole Activity:

1. Surface Runways: Unlike moles that push up the sod, voles eat the grass down to the dirt, creating intricate networks of 2-inch wide “paths” or runways on the surface of the soil. These are often hidden under tall grass or snow in the winter.
2. Root Damage: This is the most devastating sign. Voles burrow underground and eat the root systems of plants, bulbs, and tubers. The plant dies from lack of water and nutrients.
3. Bark Gnawing: In winter, when green vegetation is scarce, voles will gnaw on the bark at the base of trees and shrubs. If they chew all the way around (girdling), the tree will die.

Why They Are in Your Yard

Voles love cover. They are a favorite snack for hawks, owls, foxes, and cats, so they rarely venture into open spaces. They thrive in:

• Thick mulch beds.
• Tall grass or weeds.
• Ground cover plants (like ivy or pachysandra).
• Brush piles.

If you have “volcano mulched” your trees (piled mulch high against the trunk), you have built a luxury condo for voles. They can tunnel through the mulch and eat the bark in complete safety.

How to Stop Them

Controlling voles requires a mix of habitat modification and population control.

1. Remove the Cover

Make your yard inhospitable.

• Mulch: Pull mulch back at least 6 inches from the base of trees and shrubs. Keep mulch layers thin (1-2 inches).
• Mow: Keep grass trimmed short.
• Clean Up: Remove brush piles and leaf litter.

2. Physical Barriers

Protect your most valuable plants.

• Bulb Cages: When planting tulips or lilies, plant them inside wire mesh cages or baskets made of 1/4 inch hardware cloth.
• Tree Guards: Install plastic or wire mesh cylinders around the base of young trees to prevent bark gnawing. The guard should be buried a few inches into the soil to stop them from digging under.

3. Trapping

For active infestations, trapping is effective.

• Snap Traps: Standard mouse snap traps work well. Place them perpendicular to the surface runways, with the trigger end in the path.
• Bait: Use peanut butter mixed with oatmeal or a slice of apple.
• Safety: Cover the traps with a box or flower pot (propped up slightly) to prevent birds or pets from getting caught.

4. Rodenticides (Use Caution)

There are poisons labeled for voles, but we generally advise against them for homeowners due to the risk of “secondary poisoning.” If a hawk or your neighbor’s cat eats a poisoned vole, they can die too. Trapping is safer and more targeted.

If your garden is under siege and you can’t get the population under control, Critter Removal of Louisville can implement a comprehensive trapping and reduction program to save your landscaping.