moles

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Moles, Chapter 1

Back when my gardening took place on an exposed corner lot in industrial NW Portland, people would often stop by to declare “We could never do this! We live in the country, and the animals destroy everything!” Guess what? We now live in the county. Today, I will share with you a piece of writing I did when we lived in the city, and tomorrow I will update you on my newly countrified stance. Consider the rare and elusive mole. If you have an expanse of lawn regularly punctuated by domes of fresh earth, you may dispute the use of the word “rare”. Think about it. The mounds are evidence of mole activity, sure, but how many times have you seen the critter himself? I’m pretty sure you would have a hard time maintaining a high level of indignation if ever you came face to face with one of the little fellers. A mole has a gray coat leaning towards brown…one of those subtle tones favored by Calvin Klein. It is eiderdown soft. Mr./Ms. Mole looks like a puff of smoke with a delicate, pink snout and a pair of outsized paddle-shaped front paws specially adapted for tunneling. Moles are classified as insectivores, meaning they exist on a diet of many of the culprits you are hot to exterminate. With their tunneling, they improve soil aeration and drainage, all the while circulating soil minerals. So what’s the harm of a mound or two, on balance?

Moles, Chapter 2

So, I bet you thought I was going to come up with a story of vengeance. Surprise! I still like them, and here’s why: they push up these mounds of fluffy soil. All around them, the soil can be compacted like cement, but the hill of mole dirt is light, it’s airy, it’s the consistency of couscous. One day Richard sent me out to shovel up the molehills in preparation for the arrival of the Kamoda to come in and mow the entire area (to call it a lawn would be presumtuous). As I approached each hillock, I became ever more aware of the treasure trove I was facing: each one offered a shovelful or two of delightfully aerated soil. I filled a wheelbarrow, and then it hit me: I could mix it with corn gluten meal to solve several problems at once. Corn gluten meal is a weed seed suppressant. Locally, there is a place called Concentrates where you can buy it by the 50# bag, as apposed to buying the name brand for many dollars more. It is pretty effective at surpressing weeds, but it is a sort of brilliant orangey-yellow that is not at all attractive in a flower bed. Here is what I do: I fill my wheelbarrow with molehill dirt, add corn gluten at about 6parts dirt to 1 part meal, which tones down the color of the stuff to an acceptable level, then apply the mixture in a number of ways: Berms: I love berms, because they are a way of sculpting the land. When I dig a new bed, there are clumps of earth that pile up. I just move them to an area where mounded earth can create topographical interest. I feel like a force of nature, as I build new land formations at will. Once the configuration pleases me, I spread the surface with many layers of newspaper. If you saturate the newspaper thoroughly, it will cling nicely to the contours of the berm, and hold the mole mix in place as you shovel it on (next step). All you need to do when you are ready to plant is cut a hole in the newspaper. By the time the paper begins to decompose, you will have covered most of the surface with plant material. If no berm is in the works, I simply use my mixture as a top dressing for existing beds. The weeding has become much easier since I devised this plan. Once summer heats up, the moles slow down…but then so do I.