UrbanFarmerJon
Full Member
Posts: 41
Joined: Wed Apr 22, 2015 5:48 pm
Location: Central Indiana, Zone 5b

Came home to this hole next to my pepper plant.

Last night I noticed this hole in one of my beds. I threw dirt back in it after probing it and finding nothing in it. Came home tonight and it is back in the same spot. It goes down about 8 inches and stops. I filled it with water and nothing came out. Whatever it is, it's not eating any of the veggies and there aren't any other holes either. The garden is enclosed with deer fencing 1.5 feet tall from the ground up and another 3 feet of garden fencing on top of that. I don't see the perimeter breached at all. My thoughts are it is either coming underneath the fence or jumping off the privacy fence into the garden. Even that is wrapped in chicken wire to keep the darn cats out.

Any one have any ideas on what it might be. We have seen a chipmunk in the yard recently too.
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applestar
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Posts: 30514
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)

How big are the holes?

If about size of a quarter, then they look like mole hole with and without backfilling (if they don't intend to come back, they fill the hole from inside) -- unless this is a photo after YOU put the dirt in? ... do you have lots of earthworms in your garden beds?

If I've added compost to a garden bed, the moles come tunneling -- yesterday, I heard the chattering squeaking of moles under the new Pallet Sided High Raised Bed (PSHRB) to the bottom of which I added some unfinished compost full of earthworms, then the lemon balms were swishing in the bed next to it, then the movement moved onto the bed mulched with wood shavings and ai could actually see a moving hump in the mulch :lol: ....then the mysterious moving hump came back and retraced the entire process... Back under the PSHRB.

In my garden, I've also seen a hole like that near surviving seedlings after cutworm attack, then no more cutworms.

Chipmunk holes are bigger -- about 2" in diameter.

UrbanFarmerJon
Full Member
Posts: 41
Joined: Wed Apr 22, 2015 5:48 pm
Location: Central Indiana, Zone 5b

We have some worms. I just measured it and the hole is 3" wide and I was able to measure almost 11" into it. It tunnels out into the yard it appears, right under my fence. It drops about 6" down before turning left into a tunnel into the yard.

Tonighr in going to set up a 5 gallon bucket with a board going up to it with some sunflower seeds on the board and in the bucket to see if anything goes in tonight. Hoping whatever it is it doesn't destroy my plants!!



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