How to rid your garden of pesky voles with household tricks

A vole is a small mammal from the vole family. It resembles a cross between a mouse and a hamster and ranges from 3 to 5 inches in length. Although it appears friendly, don't be deceived. It's a real pest in the garden. When you notice one in your garden, you need to act quickly. Otherwise, you might lose a large part of your crops.

Despite their small size, voles can cause serious damage in the garden. They are nocturnal creatures that live in self-dug tunnels, making them hard to spot. These pests feed on buds, rhizomes, and plant seeds, severely damaging them.

How can you get rid of voles? This mammal is very sensitive to smells. Some smells attract it, while others repel it. These include the aroma of coffee, mint, cinnamon, spurge, currant, mint, thuja, or walnut leaves. Walnut leaves, in particular, emit substances that repel voles. Simply place a few crushed leaves into the burrow, and the pests will flee from your garden within a few hours.

Voles are an important part of the ecosystem, so they shouldn't be killed. It's unethical and inhumane. However, if none of the natural methods work, you might need stronger measures, such as using... herring. The smell of fish, especially herring, strongly affects voles and other rodents.

Like plants, place the fish in the tunnel and cover it with soil to spread the smell throughout the burrow. You can also add some water in which the herrings were marinated. After using this method, voles will not appear in your garden for a long time.