Master Gardener Decision Support Guide

Voles

Voles are mice that spend nearly all of their lives underground. They eat plant roots, especially the roots of flower bulbs, ornamental shrubs and fruit trees. Often, the gnawing will weaken or kill the plant. There are few practical ways to control vole damage. Voles can be trapped with standard mousetraps placed under the cover of flower pots, or other overhead cover that blocks out all light. Look for the runways under the mulch, and place traps cross-wise to the direction of the runways. Locate traps on a 10-foot by 10-foot grid in the landscape. Trap at least one week after the last vole is caught. In North Carolina you can use a rodenticide, with the active ingredient of chlorophacinone (Rozol). Dropping Rozol into the runs is not effective. Apply the rodenticide according to the label directions in covered locations in the runways, with 10-foot spacing. Bait until the bait stops disappearing. Rebait in 21 to 30 days.

Additional Information

The following information is provided by the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Wildlife Specialist. This is an external document. Use your browser's back button to return to the Master Gardener Decision Support Guide.

Voles in Horticulture Plantings The following document links to a file provided by the University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension Service, Great Plains Agricultural Council, and the USDA Department of Agriculture. All files are provided in Adobe Acrobat format (.pdf) and require Adobe's Acrobat Reader to view and print.
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Prevention and Control of Wildlife Species.

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