If a healthy plant suddenly wilts and dies, or ground cover looks chewed from underneath, voles are the likely cause — not moles. Voles eat roots, bulbs and bark, so the damage shows up in your plants, not just your lawn. Call (404) 647-6677 to schedule an inspection.
Is it a vole?
Small openings about the size of a golf ball, not continuous ridges. Voles often reuse tunnels moles have already dug rather than excavating their own network, and worn runways in turf connect the openings.
Voles eat plants — moles don’t
Voles are rodents, and they eat roots, bulbs, tubers and bark — especially at the base of shrubs and young trees in winter, which can girdle and kill them. UGA Extension’s apple test settles it: bury an apple on a string in a tunnel opening; if it’s gone, you have voles.
How we control voles
Trapping at an active opening is effective. We also address what’s drawing voles in — thick mulch and ground cover pressed right against plant stems give them cover to feed undetected.
Moles and voles, side by side
The two are constantly confused, and sometimes share a yard. See Mole Control if the damage looks like tunneling rather than dying plants.
Protect your landscaping
Call (404) 647-6677.
Source: UGA Extension, What Is Creating All the Tunnels in My Yard?
