Pocket gophers and moles - they are now digging up my bed of wildflowers, and eating the roots of the most beautiful tree that is probably 200 years old. They leave mounds of dirt, and big holes. Now they are destroying a 40 year old Bird of Paradise. And, I am MAD!
About 10 years ago, I bought some Mole killing strychnine powder. (Directions: put 3 T. into each hole every day at dusk.)
(I hate to kill any living thing, but these guys ate over two dozen marigold plants that I had planted in the previous weeks.)
So........I headed out to the holes - with the container of strychnine. I found the first hole - filled the measuring spoon with the deadly poison, and just before I spilled it into the hole - a little furry critter popped his head out, and..........made.........eye.........contact..........with........me, and disappeared.
OK - I decided to try ‘other’ ways............LOL. (I threw the strychnine out!)
We've had good luck with 'Cinch' style traps on gophers and, to some extent, with moles. Our gophers are smaller here (5-7 inches), so we most often use the smaller size cinch traps usually sold in pairs for moles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQbZ4Z_3uXU