Protecting potatoes from mice and voles

[@giancolabird]

Word to the wise: always request hay/straw that has no pesticides and herbacides. No grazon or roundup. My entire garden died because I 'assumed' it was free of chemicals. Wahhh

[@BackToReality]

Agreed, and sorry to hear that! Luckily this doesn’t seem to be as much of a problem where we live. But it’s a very important disclaimer for others (which we’ve included in our more recent videos that are specifically about the Ruth Stout method as well). So thanks for mentioning it here! I’ve “pinned” your comment so others see it as well.

[@TheFarmacySeedsNetwork]

Yes this is a very important detail! Glyphosate has a half life of 22 years, that's a long time to have contaminants hanging around.

[@bigskytraveller289]

I only buy hay with either some alfalfa, or sanfoin, in it. As broadleaf legumes, neither will tolerate the persistent herbicides that can cause problems in your garden. The danger is in the hays that only have grass in them. These can harbor garden destroying herbicides.

[@lambsquartersfarm]

Better yet, buy a scythe and make your own, he has the land and time

[@BackToReality]

@@lambsquartersfarm I've actually looked into buying a scythe for exactly this purpose! I hope to try it out at some point in the future. As you say, we definitely have the land, but unfortunately the time is a little more difficult to come by.

[@chadtitan4159]

I live in a place where mice 🐭 are a plague. I never thought of this till now but I planted garlic 🧄 around my deep leaf mulch potato garden. I was surprised that I had a huge harvest with no mice problems. You might be on to something here.

[@BackToReality]

Oh that's great news! I really hope this ends up being a long-term solution. It's so easy, and ends up providing a second crop. Win win!

[@kaku8223]

Most older houses in older neighborhoods have mint planted all the ways around the house rodents do not like mint bats do not like mint Nature knows how to form a perimeter

[@Denpachii]

@@kaku8223 There is a lot of of wild mint near me. I think some of it will be transplanted soon.👍

[@Denpachii]

I like that idea, I never thought of it. My potatoes were decimated this year by voles. I never really considered that there might be a problem, since for years I never had one. I trapped and relocated eight of the little critters (including the babies I located under the straw) and two chipmunks. Too late for the spuds this year, but hopefully the next will be better. Looking it up, they dislike and are repelled by any of the Allium family.

[@christopherstein2024]

@@Denpachii I found that fresh garlic roots taste pretty much like fresh garlic cloves. The cute little hamsters probably start crying when they dig through the allium roots. 🐹 💔🏰🥔

[@Warrior-In-the-Garden]

I love your respect for scientific principles when sharing your results...an honorable and rare quality these days.

[@mariecooney2331]

I had a vole and mouse problem, but now that I have 2 cats , I have no problem …coincidence ?🤔, I think not 😉😂

[@pache2112]

Amen. Our cat patrols our entire 5 acres night and day and then we know when he catches a straggler because he leaves it right by the backdoor!! 🐱

[@gac914]

Back when I kept my gardens, I was plagued with another rodent specie, (rabbits.) I got a tip from an experienced gardener that told me to plant Marigolds around the entire perimeter of the garden. I never again had any problems, plus the garden was always ringed in rather attractive flowers of various colors. (just don't get you nose too close to smell the flowers, they stink to high heaven, which was the deterrent to the pests. . . .!!!!)

[@hifuqua]

Also good for nematodes.

[@HegenerHomestead]

I quite like the smell of marigolds...

[@Trupen]

I'm not planning to plan potatoes, but I still love your videos they are so relaxing :D

[@lorangerie220]

Great video as always. I come originally from Canada, now live in Germany. I tried this methods (planting onions or garlic to protect other crops) in the last few years. Maybe the voles here are different, but here is what I experienced: the first year on a patch there is almost no vole damage. Then the voles come in and eat almost 100% of the potatoes. With onions? They do not stop eating the potatoes (or carrots, or whatever) and will even eat some of the onions!! With garlic? They will not eat garlic, but they will tunnel directly beside it to reach what's on the other side. This is still anecdotal of course. Still experimenting, trying to improve the mushroom community in my beds, since voles will prefer to eat fresh mycellium to plants if they can. Will see next year!

[@myronplatte8354]

One factor you might consider is how desperate the rodents are. They may have very little food and a super high population. I always try to go for defense in depth with these things. I ask myself the three what's: "What does it like? What does it hate? What eats it?" So you're doing a good job, with the onions as a deterrent and the fungi as a forage. But there's the third what missing, and the answer to that one is cats. Get a good outdoor mouser. A savage one that kills for fun. That should decrease the population enough for the rodents not to be so desperate.

[@lorangerie220]

@@myronplatte8354 Yeah, we have a hunter cat that is there and successful every day, but its just not enough. We are trying to attract owls (nesting place, perches), but until now without success. We tried every deterrents in the book, none of which work for more than a week or two. There are a lot of wild carrots and pastinaca in the field around us, though they did decimate most of it by now. It is clear that we have a lack of predators, but so far we couldnt attract more owls though the habitat around us would be perfect. More cats would and do also hunt more birds, which we would like to avoid. We should probably start eating voles ourselves... ;) Anyway, thanks for the tip. I'll keep an eye open for a good mouser as you say.

[@myronplatte8354]

@@lorangerie220 wow. Sounds like someone has been heavily abusing your local ecology for a long time, if you have so many rodents. I wouldn't worry about cats killing birds. As long as you have good bird habitat and a surplus of rodents, cats will help the bird population more than harm it. The rodents eat many of the same foods as the birds do.

[@StrangeLittleGarden]

I have two small potato beds. About the size of a queen size bed each. And a few times during the summer and when I plant them I will sprinkle the hay and the ground with a mix of cinnamon and ginger powder. So far it's worked good to keep rodents at Bay. I tried to sprinkle them usually directly before a rain so it'll wash the cinnamon down into the hay deep

[@79PoisonBreaker]

i am really enjoying walking onions for the purpose of pest reduction, very potent and easy to manage.

[@tessen58]

The pocket gophers in my garden love garlic. They'll eat it all if they can. They don't eat the onions though. I have Quack grass, voles, pocket gophers, mice, ground squirrels, squirrels, chipmunks, and now.... Giant Marmots. Lots of giant Marmots who can dig down a foot and climb more that 5 feet. I'm not giving up but it is sure a battle!! Yes, the first couple of years nothing ate the potatoes. Then they found them and also established their tunnels and probably made lots of baby rodents after eating all my good nutritious food. I enjoy your videos and I hope you keep them coming!

[@kevin3434343434]

That meadow pathway is the thing of dreams! I LOVE it!

[@bobg5362]

Great information as always. Thank you. I let those potato fruits dry and save the potato seeds inside. I figure God forbid some blight or calamity happens that wipes out my entire potato crop and/or seed potatoes are unavailable, I might at least have something to fall back on. The resulting tubers may not be true to type, but any taters is better than no taters.

[@2VeganLove]

Have you planted any?

[@amacfoster2955]

@@2VeganLove No, but I should experiment just to see.

[@wvhaugen]

I started reading Ruth Stout's books in 1971. I tried her methods twenty years ago in NW Washington state when I started as a market gardener. Massive slug damage. Went back to the traditional method of planting in soil, hilling with dirt and then using as much mulch as I could get. I have been in France for the last six years and the slugs are not as bad in my half acre home garden. The birds and lizards keep them manageable. This year I have a lot of straw I purchased last season (Side note: I spent more on straw last season - 400 euros - than I did on fertilizer - 300 euros.) I have two experiments in play. One experiment is throwing the long-stoloned, poorly stored potatoes on the ground and covering them with straw. Some are coming up, but we had a severe cold spell mid-April. The other experiment is planting in soil and hilling up right away (which I have used for years) and then covering everything with the straw. Slow sprouting so far, but it is still only May 9th and we are at 500 meters in the Pyrenees. Keep up the good work.

[@91210paige]

I typically grow in containers. Easier to weed but more watering needed. I hope to use the Ruth Stout method next spring on a hill I don't use for much and hope for a huge harvest. Thanks for the onions tip.

[@simplegardeningjourney2068]

Interesting! Our local voles ate all most our onion sets this year...

[@DebRoo11]

Yup. Voles, mice and squirrels are definitely not deterred by aliums. They'll ruin them all too

[@livingintoday06]

So my family went out yesterday to harvest some of our potatoes and discovered that about a quarter of them had been chewed on in 25 ft of a 50 ft bed. This 25 ft had red potatoes growing in it with no onions or garlic. The other 25 ft of the 50 ft bed has white onions and garlic. We harvested 3 plants from the white potatoes and none of them were chewed on. We have another 50 ft bed of white potatoes and onions growing about 3 ft away from the row that had rodent damage. We harvested 6 plants from this row and there is no rodent damage at all. I couldn't figure it out at first so I went to KZbin to find an answer. Now I know❣️ Thank you sir😊 Peace and Love Neighbors ❤️

[@gayle5211]

I'm totally going to try this! I followed your Ruth Stout method for two growing seasons and the potatoes took a beating from what I had assumed were mice. Voles! Little buggers! I went back to the old method of burying the potatoes under soil, but I'll try the onion fence this year in an extra bed and see what happens. Thanks for the update and all your videos. I really enjoy them and appreciate you keeping it real.

[@mikepoddar]

Best channel I have ever encountered. Greetings from Africa.

[@shookings]

Derek, you're looking good. Glad to see you again

[@thisorthat7626]

The migrating hay pile method makes so much sense! I am going to use this for my garden as well. I need to store the hay someplace, and reducing the amount of effort it takes to move it is smart. Let us know how it works for you and potatoes. Cheers.

[@opcn18]

I let weeds go crazy in my garden this year and the voles and pack rats that overwintered on my sunchokes (I didn't get to eat a single one) have absolutely devastated all my cabbage and beets. Probably facing a 95% loss. They just eat the crowns off the beets too so the root dies with nowhere to send out new leaves.

[@giancolabird]

Exvellent content. Thank you. I use the Ruth Stout method and would like to avoid voles.

[@BackToReality]

They're cute little things, but my goodness they're hungry! If you try this method, I hope it works for you too!

[@jordyhumby]

Thank you for sharing. God bless.

[@OldChief3854]

I live in the Deep South. I have planted potatoes in hay for the last 4 or 5 years. My problems are with ants and centipede. A permethrin based spray seems to fix this. I pull the hay back from around the greens, spray and spread it back around and greens.

[@hermanhale9258]

I was wondering about that. I planted my potatoes in a wire bin with shredded leaves for the plant material. Ants, of course, will colonize.

[@lordflash11]

Absolutely love your wild meadow area

[@TheFarmacySeedsNetwork]

Excellent experiment! Thanks for sharing this experiment with us!

[@BackToReality]

Thanks for watching! I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@Flowergurl2000]

Love your video style of mixed media. Very unique.

[@littlehomesteadbythebeach]

I'm looking foward for the next years! Even if we do not grow potatoes. haha!

[@TheMindfulHomestead]

Great video. Potatoes are so fun to grow. Look forward to seeing how this works in the years to come. I’ve got a vole who’s been attacking my rhubarb patch.

[@BackToReality]

Thanks! From what I've read, alliums make a great companion plant for rhubarb anyway, so it might be worth a shot to plant some onions or garlic around them. If you do try it, please let us know how it works out!

[@chris3954]

I'd like to suggest a possibly easier hay mulching practice for growing crop of potatoes. I myself plan to begin this trial fall 23' but to do this it will require a large rectangular hay field. You will need a tractor, mower and hay rake too. Planting will be down one long narrow row. Begin in the fall by mowing down the entire grass hay field low, you can use a brush hog or sickle bar mower. Then you will need to hay rake long windrows like straight hay rows. Keep raking these windrows together towards the middle of the field. By using the hay rake on the tractor it should save your back. Using a sickle mower may reduce the loss of hay over the brilush hog. Later you will again be fluffing up the mulch hay in the spring. You might wish to finish in the fall with three final rows. Leave plently of space between these last three rows. In the Spring you would be planting your spuds just under that middle row of mulch. As the spuds grow through that first layer of mulch begin raking both of the side rows a tractor with to that middle row. Begin to rake the long side row from one side on top of the potatoe row. Then repeat again for that last mulching in a few weeks from the other side mulch row. Try to stay on the tractor & learn how to let the rake do most the heavy work. A three tine pitch fork walk down this long row should be all you need to tidy up covering that one long row of mulched potatoes. Onions and garlic sounds like good companions too. www.epicgardening.com/potato-companion-plants/#:~:text=A%20few%20vegetables%20that%20are,onions%2C%20garlic%2C%20and%20radishes.

[@pepper24able]

What a beautiful Monet-like backdrop. Love your vids.

[@LBurnsy]

Damn I love your videos. Good vibes your way! 💕🇨🇦

[@dosfisdo]

Always nice to hear about your successes and failures. keep up the great work.

[@Blackhuf]

Good to see, you and the garden are doing well ;) Thanks for the onion-tipp! I will plant more garlic and onions around the garden next year, since I have a lot of moles and that will maybe help me with them as well :D

[@MK-ti2oo]

The voles here are specifically eating my onions, I never would've dreamed they would go for onions of all things.

[@hifuqua]

What kind of onions are they? Are they the sweet yellow onions?

[@MK-ti2oo]

@@hifuqua no they're spicy white onions and red onions. My sweet onions are in beds with hardware cloth under the soil, 7 ft fences all around and small square electric fencing all around lol. The animals are so hard to contend with here that you have to militarize garden spaces. Squirrels, birds, voles, deer, bears, it's never ending.

[@hifuqua]

@@MK-ti2oo I'm lucky that I only have to fight off opossums, raccoons, mice, rats, and my own chickens.

[@hifuqua]

@@MK-ti2oo Maybe try garlic next time. It might be the voles were after the moisture in the onions, maybe?

[@MK-ti2oo]

@@hifuqua oh yea, garlic is the only thing I can plant unprotected. They're definitely after the moisture, they like to chew my plant stems through right at the soil level or just below soil level, they don't eat the plant, just gnaw the stems for water. My new growing space is heavily protected, it's just an old bed that I thought I'd try to go ahead and use for extras when I ran out of space but damn the voles and birds have destroyed half of what I planted in it. I even put water dishes out to try to discourage chewing but, fail. Lol

[@akblg5763]

Our onions are the first thing that disappeared because of voles. But they don't eat our garlic

[@georgebowman1060]

Most interesting.

[@jeannettejorge8921]

Our deer ate all the onions planted out in the open this year, although I'd read that they don't like them. Peppermint works as an excellent rodent deterrent but it grows by rhizomes abd spreads like the Dickens.

[@toribrattain4210]

Going to try this with an onion and garlic parimeter for a section (seperately) watermelon, potatoes, and something else I've yet to decide, possibly broccoli/other brassicas

[@Flowergurl2000]

Dig your ways. All gardens are an experiment station. You are right about the allium hatred. Voles hate them. Also hot peppers.

[@Successfulgardendesign]

Love your videos! And many thanks for this update, my potatoes were munched this year and I wasn't sure what had done it so will try the onions next year...

[@reirvivir5880]

Another great video

[@theprepperfrog167]

thx

[@small-timegarden]

Garlic, leeks, chives and...ongyunz😁

[@jimr0026]

Voles DO eat garlic. I plant my garlic in the fall for a larger July harvest. For last year I planted almost a thousand cloves the previous fall. Thirty-five came up. The rest? Either eaten or MOVED by the voles. We had clumps of garlic appear in our asparagus bed. efforts to transplant were futile and now I am on a mission to eradicate the voles. I need some cats.

[@slavenjardin2927]

In my garden the voles are not touching garlic, however, they do attack the onions as much as carrots, potatoes or any other nice root or tuber... Maybe I should try a less sweet variety of onions.

[@lwjenson]

Love your videos!

[@doinacampean9132]

I hope you'll make a potato harvest video. Not boring at all.

[@sandragarner3913]

My mother always planted onions within other crops. No animals

[@BackToReality]

Fantastic! Did she intentionally plant the onions for that purpose, or was it just a coincidence?

[@sylmarie6494]

@@BackToReality It's definitely not coincidence because I had lots of moles in my garden. I planted garlic around my potatoes, and I've not seen any activity of moles in my garden. Seems they're all on an extended vacation. 😁 This really bolsters the idea of permaculture/companion planting. It really works!

[@hermanhale9258]

@@sylmarie6494 I'm going to try this on my front lawn. Wherever the moles, tunnel, I will plant.

[@jordanveillette7937]

doing a market garden i did have some voles eating carrots in an interplanted oignon carrot garden with a loooot of oignons and garlic

[@HelenRullesteg]

That would be so great if it works and is not just a fluke as I have a real mouse/vole problem with them eating everything from a melon plant 🤬 to potatoes, cabbage plants, you name it, they are not picky around here!! As usual, really enjoyed your video.

[@kathymoore3967]

Great video, looks like you are in for a good harvest of taters. I planted onions and a few basil plants around my tomatoes and no tomatoe horn worm so far.

[@thenextpoetician6328]

Quick search, and there is no confusion - onions are rodent control.

[@roggie77777]

Question. If you boxed in an area with wood bured in the ground to stop Quackgrass. Maybe 4 inch underground and 2 above ground, like a mod raised bed.

[@thefermenter6626]

I discovered lots of tunnels just under the mulch in my garden this spring and all of my beets "disappeared" overwinter. I have never run into this and I think it would be voles doing the damage. As for onions and garlic as a repellent, have you ever grown Egyptian walking onions and do you think a border of these would be effective? My garlic is already in and I don't grow conventional onions. Not sure what else can be done as my garden is quite large. I have seven 45' rows. Thanks for your insight.

[@gawain8000]

Great video

[@BackToReality]

Thanks! :)

[@lindalyc]

what vegetables you grow outside the fence that won't be eaten or damaged by animals? thanks

[@NorthernHomestead]

Nice information as always! I see you have mowed walking paths and what looks like natural flower and grass growing otherwise. That’s what we envision as well. Question how do you keep it from having invasive weeds and thistles growing in there and do you ever cut it all? More information would be greatly appreciated.

[@2VeganLove]

I harvest paths in my yard to use in my gardens... to the places I go and around my gardens, a place to do cartwheels and hula hoop to music.... My route is determined by what is prolific like yellow dock and grasses I'll wave my route to mow them while leaving anything flowering .... if you walk them a lot you rarely have to mow and the tall soft grass feels good on your feet and can handle long hot spells with grace A weed is an unknown plant, I've been getting to know my yard, learning a plant at a time, using many for medicine, especially the so called invasives. I believe plants come to us when we need them and they have certainly healed me. Not sure is you were asking, but I love my yard of paths, and oh, the yellow flowers are 💛 Glorious Golden Rod 💛... the Cure not the cause of our allergies as they are often blamed

[@patkonelectric]

My mon use to plant garlic in here patio plants to keep the chipmunks from eating her plants. Probably made my dad sad because he sat out on the patio with a bb gun to take them out.

[@victorialg1270]

I've had intensive vole problems. I'm moving g my walking onions this fall. And I know where the garlic is going to go.

[@edwinportier4763]

how long does it take your hay to decay before using it, or how long do you wait? I first tried hay and it was full of Bermuda grass seed, then I tried wheat straw and I ended up growing wheat :-( All bales were fresh, dummy me

[@odulcina]

Do you find lots of grass snakes in the mulch pile?

[@floriebrown2089]

Lovely potatoes, I need to test if the hay the animal feed place sell are free of weed killer I know their straw has weed killer, thanks for the video

[@SARAHILL-ps6th]

I lost onions to voles,.

[@Hobypyrocom]

are those purple plants behind you orchis? if yes then you can make a great winter hot drink out of them called Salep... we love that stuff here in Macedonia and Turks also count it as a national drink...

[@AGooseInSweden]

Super late reply, but I'm fairly sure that they're Fireweed - it's a very common plant in boreal regions throughout the planet, often growing in these big sheets as you see in the video. It's not an orchid, but from what I've heard (and I think also tasted, if I recall correctly) it does make for excellent tea as well.

[@ernestoginebra9651]

You back !!!! What happens to you ?

[@08shelbysierra]

Does the straw prevent hornworms quite well?

[@moniquegebeline4350]

I want to do this so bad but I am terrified to get tainted hay. I’m pretty sure almost everyone sprays where I am.

[@tripthyme6378]

Still watching but I have a rodent problem so thank you!

[@BackToReality]

No problem! If you try this, I hope it works for you too!

[@justintr4888]

Random question about your van-living days: how did you handle things like mail and all the other parts of life that require you to give them a permanent address?

[@marcinepritchard6164]

For the disabled this works well, do you ever water your potato patch.? I have tons of wild onions, those are horrendous around potatoes so don't use. They take over everything

[@garbrys984]

This is really great! Thank you for putting out this information. Do you guys ever have problems with deer eating the potato plants? From what I understand, aliliums seem to be a deterrent to deer, but I wonder how close they need to be to do so. Any thoughts or experiments with any of this?

[@tessen58]

If the deer get hungry then yes, they will eat potato plants, and rhubarb leaves.

[@SirMarshalHaig]

So you need onions and garlic to get your potatoes? I call that a win-win.

[@taufiq6277]

Have you ever plant sweet potatoes thr same way? Btw Nice vids guys.

[@sifonjericno]

First like,then watch :)

[@BackToReality]

I like your style! :)

[@sifonjericno]

@@BackToReality Did you consider puting potatoes in some barel or something similar, where you put hay or straw?

[@BackToReality]

This has been on our list for a while, but we haven't gotten around to it yet. A lot of people have great success with potato towers, so it would be fun to add hay to the mix. Luckily, we have plenty of space to let them spread out here. But for smaller gardens, I think this would be a great idea.

[@scottL9111]

I've been watching your videos and I'm going to use the Ruth Stout method. Question: When you plant potatoes do you need to rotate the crop so that you don't plant them in the same area for 2 years?

[@BackToReality]

This is a really good question. I think most people would probably suggest rotating your potato crop from year to year (to avoid depletion of specific nutrients, avoid the buildup of potato-loving pests, etc.). However, it's not something that we've really put much thought into (at least, not yet). In her book "Gardening Without Work: For the Aging, the Busy, and the Indolent", Ruth declared that "rotating crops is nonsense" lol. She also states that after many years, she had completely given up on rotating her crops and nothing seemed to revolt. Her explanation was that her method "where the soil was constantly renewed by rotting mulch" made it unnesesary. So, personally, I don't feel super confident / qualified to provide any actual advice, but if you have the energy and space, it probably can't hurt. But if not, then I wouldn't let it stop you from trying her method and growing some potatoes. :)

[@scottL9111]

@@BackToReality Thank You!

[@lambsquartersfarm]

Dont think this will work. Till a strip around the bed and ensure it stays bare soil during growing, voles dont like to be exposed to raptors and will avoid. I’m all for no till, but ya gotta eat!

[@BackToReality]

Out of curiosity, why don't you think the onions will work? Just that they won't act as a good enough deterrent, and the rodents will still return over time? Either way, leaving a bare strip is a good suggestion. Thanks!

[@lambsquartersfarm]

@@BackToReality They're such pesky creatures and they love mulch/ground cover. I talked to a few old timers in my area and they all told me the same thing: voles won't go over bare ground for fear of raptors. After losing sweet potatoes, melons, beets that I mulched, I just can't stick with no-till ... it's just too risky. I have a 9 acre farm of which I grow in about a half acre, I don't lose sleep over tilling it. I still use mulches, but as said, I ensure there are bare ground on the perimeters to keep the voles out.

[@organic3132]

Wow, you lost a lot of weight.

[@jimr0026]

Commercial mole/vole repellent is made from castor beans. Has anyone used castor beans or oil or plants to repel the little critters? I'm concerned about the toxic characteristics of castor.

[@tessen58]

I use a granulated castor product and sprinkle it heavily under and around the tubers when I plant. It does help and I have yet to get ill from the potatoes.

[@kylepeterson5403]

First!

[@BackToReality]

My goodness, you're quick! :) Thanks, and I hope you enjoy it!

[@rakithalakruwan82]

2nd

[@BackToReality]

You're quick too! :) Thanks for watching!

[@GRZEBANIEC]

Polska pozdrawia.prosze tłumaczenie.na. język.polski.Bardzo.mi.zallezy,,