Every homeowner wants a perfect carpet of lush green grass that looks nice from the street and is safe for kids to play on. You need to know how to keep animals from digging in your yard when they ruin your perfectly green lawn by making holes and ripping up the grass.
That’s why we looked into how to spot animals that dig and stop them from making holes in your yard that you have to trip over. In this article, we’ll cover:
As a gardener, you’ve likely spent time and money carefully selecting and spreading mulch in your garden beds Mulch helps retain moisture, improves soil health, and prevents weeds But you head out one morning to find your once pristine mulch dug up and scattered across the bed. What gives? Chances are some local wildlife has been up to no good in your garden after dark.
Mulch provides an appealing habitat for insects and other invertebrates. It’s a great place for pillbugs millipedes, sowbugs spiders, and insect larvae to hide. And where there are bugs, larger animals won’t be far behind looking for an easy meal. Raccoons are one of the most common culprits behind late-night mulch pillaging. But skunks, opossums, armadillos, and even neighborhood dogs and cats may be to blame. Identifying the footprints, dig patterns, and other signs left behind can help you get to the bottom of the mystery.
Why Animals Dig in Mulch
For many animals, your mulched beds are like an all-you-can-eat bug buffet. The moist, organic mulch provides the perfect environment for earthworms, beetle grubs, and other insects to thrive. Raccoons have very dexterous front paws adapted for digging, and a keen sense of smell to sniff out their next snack. Using their paws, they’ll dig through the mulch searching for choice bugs and insect larvae to gobble up.
Skunks also use their claws and snouts to root around in mulch seeking out beetle grubs, worms, spiders, and other critters And opossums, while they don’t dig due to having soft paws, will still come to feast on the insects and grubs uncovered by other animals Even feral cats may pay a visit to your mulch beds hunting for an easy meal.
Some animals, like squirrels and chipmunks, dig specifically for buried seeds or nuts. And neighborhood dogs may dig out of curiosity, boredom, or interest in the smell of natural mulches like cocoa hulls. Whatever the motivation, the result is overturned and scattered mulch and destruction in your garden beds.
Identifying the Culprit
Figuring out which nighttime visitors are ruining your mulch takes some detective work. The key is looking for distinctive tracks, digging patterns, and other signs left behind that can point to the perpetrator. Here are some clues to help identify which animals are treating your garden like an all-night diner:
Raccoons – Look for small handprint-like tracks around dug up areas. The digging will be focused around specific spots where they’ve detected food. Holes are usually 3-10 inches wide and shallow.
Skunks – You’ll find cone-shaped holes around 3-6 inches wide where skunks have dug with their claws and snout. The dug up spots will be concentrated as they search intensively for insects.
Armadillos – Armadillos leave very distinctive winding holes that can be up to 6 inches deep and 3 inches wide. They root around randomly with their long snouts versus intently digging out prey.
Squirrels – Small claw marks and shallow digging concentrated around newly planted bulbs or buried nuts point to squirrels. They dig expediently versus overturning large areas.
Dogs – Medium to large-sized paw prints plus frenzied, haphazard digging patterns are signs a neighborhood dog is to blame. Some dogs target aromatic mulches like cocoa hulls.
Cats – Look for small claw marks and mulch piled over specific areas in an attempt to cover up feline bathroom business. Several cats may repeatedly use the spot.
Mice & Voles – Tiny teeth marks on bulb skins or shells plus shallow surface tunnels through mulch indicate mice. Voles leave elaborate underground tunnel networks with no surface evidence.
Deterring Mulch Marauders
Once you’ve identified the culprit, you can take steps to deter the animals from treating your garden like a midnight snack bar. Here are some effective tactics:
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Use insect-repelling plants like garlic, Lavender, and Marigolds around the perimeter.
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Apply granular or liquid animal repellents labeled for deterring digging animals. Reapply after rain.
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Use odor repellents like ammonia-soaked rags or human hair clippings spread atop the mulch.
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Install motion-sensor lights to startle and scare off nighttime prowlers.
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Use a wire mesh barrier at least 12-inches tall around garden beds to block digging animals.
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Apply grub control chemicals like Bacillus thuringiensis to kill beetle larvae in surrounding lawns.
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Trap and relocate repeat offenders using humane cage traps baited with attractants.
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Consider switching to larger mulch pieces less likely to harbor insects and harder to dig through.
With some persistence and trying different techniques, you can discourage these annoying animals from demolishing your mulch beds. A multi-pronged approach using both physical barriers and odor/taste repellents is usually most effective to outsmart those smart garden raiders. Soon you’ll be able to enjoy picture-perfect mulch beds that stay neatly intact and deter weeds, without the unwanted contributions from local wildlife.
So don’t let those late-night mulch marauders get you down! With some simple precautions, you can deter the animals and keep your garden looking fresh. And you won’t have to replenish mulch nearly as often. A little effort now will save you time and money down the road. Soon your garden can be a haven for you, not a midnight snack bar for uninvited critters.
What animals dig in your lawn?
Knowing what kind of animal you are dealing with will help you come up with a good plan to get it out of your yard.
Before you can figure out what kind of animal is destroying your flower beds, you’ll need a list of all the likely candidates:
- Armadillos
- Badgers
- Birds
- Chipmunks
- Foxes
- Gophers
- Groundhogs
- Moles
- Rabbits
- Racoons
- Rats
- Skunks
- Snakes
- Squirrels
- Voles
Not only do some mammals dig in the ground, but so do many types of birds that like to rip up the ground in search of tasty bugs. These birds can include crows, magpies, and starlings.
Once you know what kind of animal is digging in your yard, you can come up with a good plan to keep it from destroying your grass and soil.
How do you fix tunnels in the yard?
Holes and tunnels in your yard will eventually collapse on their own. But there are things you can do to get rid of the tunnels in your yard right away on the spot.
Use your foot to flatten mole mounds or sections of the yard where there are tunnels. This will compact the soil and collapse underground tunnels. You also can use a garden tool such as a garden trowel. You also can run over the area with a mower or a roller to push the soil down.
Another way to fill in the holes is to add dirt to the tunnel:
- Dig a trench to the tunnel.
- Place gravel (or soil for gardens) inside the tunnel.
- Top the gravel layer with the topsoil.
- To get the grass to grow back, fertilize and overseed your lawn.
As long as you can see holes in the tunnel, you can fill them with dirt and smooth them out with a shovel or other gardening tool.
What Is Digging in My Mulch Every Night?
FAQ
How do I stop animals from digging in my mulch?
What animal is digging holes in my mulch at night?
What is digging holes in my mulch?
What animal tunnels in mulch?
How do I stop animals from digging holes in my lawn at night?
One of the most effective ways to stop animals from digging holes in your lawn at night is to call a wildlife control expert. This expert can remove the animals and relocate them to a better home area. The expert can also take measures to close future entryways to keep the animals away.
What is digging up your lawn at night?
If this has happened to you, you probably immediately wondered what is digging up your lawn at night. Raccoons and skunks are two common grub-eating nocturnal culprits for digging in yards.
How do I stop skunks from digging holes in my lawn at night?
Strong lights can serve as effective skunk repellent at night since these animals are nocturnal and operate mostly in the dark. One of the most effective ways to stop animals from digging holes in your lawn at night is to call a wildlife control expert. This expert can remove the animals and relocate them to a better home area.
How do you prevent pests from digging holes in raised beds?
Preventing pests from digging holes requires installing physical barriers or planting repellant plants like lavender, marigolds, and citronella. In this article, we’ll explore the causes of holes in raised beds and provide tips on identifying what’s digging holes in your garden.
Do rabbits dig holes in your yard at night?
Rabbits are burrowing animals that have also been known to dig holes in yards, and they have a better chance of doing so undetected at night. In addition, other animals are active during the day, including squirrels, that might damage your lawn, and you may not discover the problem until the following day.
Do grubs dig up your lawn?
Since grubs are a major reason raccoons, skunks and other wild animals are attracted to your lawn, if you want to stop these animals from digging up your yard, you need to know how to get rid of them.