it was all going so well

I don't have hardware cloth under my beds, but hopefully that doesn't turn out to be a mistake! Maybe I'll put the trap out in the morning and see what happens. While most of the garden is behind the electric fence, I have 12 tomatoes in buckets, a cement mixing tub of strawberries, and a couple of pepper plants that are not protected. Our back yard is mostly paverstone patio and I've eked out as much as I can for the garden while still leaving enough space for the dogs to go potty.

Thank you again for telling me about the Squirrelinator last year - I don't know that I would have had a garden without it!

Could someone post pictures of squirrel holes? Something has been digging (thankfully, in my back yard) and I'm trying to figure out what it could be.

Maybe squirrels, gophers, moles, or voles?

I thought that squirrels were tree dwelling, not burrowing creatures. Donna, perhaps you could post a photo of the area in question.

If you have moles or voles watch the video on this link
http://traplinetraps.homestead.com/Voles.html

I made 2 of them a few days ago, they work.
Very easy to make up, just some old downspout and a few traps..
Squirrels in my yard will dig for items they think may be buried, however none of these will borrow.

Thanks for the video link! I think my problem is gophers, based upon pictures of the types of damage the various varmints do. So far, it hasn't been a problem, but lately I've noticed a small area of lawn that's very soft and spongy, almost like the beginning of a sink hole.

Here on the west coast we have ground squirrwls that are very destructive. Here is some info:

http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7438.html

http://ucanr.edu/sites/Ground_Squirrel_BMP/Biology/Identifying_Burrows/

Donna, if you have gophers I hope you have wire on the bottom of your beds. That is the only way I can have a garden here.

Lindacol,

Thanks for the heads-up!

So far, however, there's no sign of gophers in the front yard, which is the main site of my SFG :scratch: . The area that may be infested is bordered by about 400 square feet of large gravel, the house, and a huge deck.

Do you think that's sufficient protection for my front yard? Or should I go out and buy some hardware cloth before I install new beds?

Just how big are these ground squirrels ?

2 inch body & 2 inch tail or bigger like a chipmunk, say 3 inch body with 4 inch tail ?

Here is a photo of a chipmunk and a grey squirrel.

Thanks Camp ,
Which one of them do you guys call a ground squirrel then ?

plantoid wrote:Thanks Camp ,
Which one of them do you guys call a ground squirrel then ?

Here is info on the California Ground Squirrel. It is about 18" long (including the tail).

http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/californiagroundsquirrel.htm

Cheers Linda ,
Are they any good for eating ... baked , fried , roast, BBQ , curries , satays etc ?

When I was four years old, and visiting my step-grandfather in Arkansas, I remember him taking my brother and me on horseback to go squirrel hunting. I don't remember whether he bagged any, or whether we ate any. If so, it certainly wasn't curry, satay, etc.!

I had several people ask me if we were going to eat them but I don't think the economy is that bad in my neighborhood yet.

I asked because on this side of the pond quite a few of my shooting friends eat their own shot ferral american greys and say they tase very good .

None of them seem short of a dollar or two either, some being very much
in the opposite camp indeed.

plantoid wrote:I asked because on this side of the pond quite a few of my shooting friends eat their own shot ferral american greys and say they tase very good .

None of them seem short of a dollar or two either, some being very much
in the opposite camp indeed.

I know, I was kidding. A lot of people in the States do eat squirrel (I hear they make a good stew), but we live in Los Angeles so learning to dress your kill isn't something they really taught in the public schools. How to duck and cover during an earthquake, yes, but not how to kill and prepare a squirrel for dinner.

Funny story, I spent 6 years working on a game based on The Lord of the Rings and our American artists made grey squirrels to run around Middle-earth because, well, squirrels are grey here and that's what they knew. There was an outcry from the Tolkien purists exclaiming that the Professor would be rolling in his grave because grey squirrels weren't introduced to Europe until the 19th century and he would have seen them as a sign of industrialization, which he hated. So we changed the color of the squirrels to red, except in Mirkwood, where they are black and evil.

Can't see what the problem was , the greys could have dug a vorpel tunnel and come in to middle earth via different route .

Judging from the suggested size of the ground squirrels a small mink break back trap would sound the best choice of trap, set inside a pipe .