Henny Penny Farmette

Tomatoes can grow well in raised beds like this wire-bottom box to deter moles

Last year, our garden went under siege to moles, voles, and gophers. They drove us crazy with tunnels, tracks, and earth mounds–the means to devour our newly planted bulbs and plants. We didn’t see signs of the voles but we knew we had them, too, when one showed up drowned in a post hole after a rainstorm.

But whether the rodent is a gopher, vole, or mole, they are unwanted pests in my garden. This year, my husband and I decided they could roam around if they wanted, but we were going to protect our plants one way or another.

For our heirloom blue tomatoes, Carlos built four -by-six feet boxes to hold soil. For each, we nailed small-hole poultry wire over the bottom, then flipped the box over to set in place on the ground.

We then filled the box with alternating layers of natural soil, compost, and dried horse manure (any type of manure must be dried and aged or it’ll be hot and kill your plant).

We planted, staked, and watered the tomatoes. We’ve seen no evidence of rodent tunnels despite having planted in an area where we know there are tunnels. We’re thrilled with the result. I just may have to do my whole garden in boxes next year.

Tags: earth-filled boxes, gophers, moles, mounds, Tomatoes, tracks, voles