Before you jump into how to get rid of gophers or moles, confirm what’s tunneling under your lawn. Gophers are herbivores that chomp plant roots and create fan-shaped mounds with a visible soil plug; moles eat insects and create raised ridges running across the yard with volcano-style mounds.
If you’re unsure, our blog on “What is a gopher?” will help you spot key differences fast—critical before you buy traps or repellents. Misidentifying the pest is the #1 reason DIY efforts fail.
The quick game plan (so you don’t lose another weekend)
Identify the animal and active tunnels:
- Decide on humane vs. lethal tactics.
- Combine actions (deterrent + trapping + habitat tweaks).
- Monitor daily for two weeks.
- If activity persists, bring in a pro for targeted gopher control.
Below are 10 field-tested tips, from gentle to firm, so you can pick the approach that fits your yard.
1. Map active tunnels before doing anything else
You can’t fix what you can’t find. Lightly tamp down a few fresh mounds at dusk. By morning, the ones that reopen are active. Mark them with flags. This makes every later step, repellents, traps, and barriers way more efficient and sets you up for success with how to get rid of gophers in the yard or moles in a focused way (not randomly all over your lawn).
2. Start with a gentle gopher deterrent (especially near gardens)
If you’re looking for a lower-impact start, use castor oil-based granular or liquid repellents on active areas. These don’t harm animals, and they can nudge tunnels away from beds, patios, and play areas. Repellents alone rarely solve the whole problem, but as a gopher deterrent, they help push activity away from sensitive zones while you work other angles.
3. Seal plant roots with wire baskets when planting
Gophers love tender root systems. For valuable shrubs, roses, and fruit trees, line planting holes with galvanized gopher baskets. It’s not glamorous, but it’s a durable, humane booster for how to keep gophers away from prized plants. If you’ve ever thought, “Why are there gophers in my yard?” you know how fast they can wreak havoc on a garden.
4. Install underground barriers along the fence line
For long-term protection, trench 18–24 inches deep and install ½-inch galvanized hardware cloth, bending the bottom 6 inches outward (an “L” shape) to block burrowing. This is the single best structural answer to how to rid your yard of gophers with minimal ongoing effort. It’s not instant, but it’s lasting.
5. Address food sources (moles = insects; gophers = vegetation)
If your question is how to get rid of gophers in grass vs. moles in grass, your strategy changes:
- Gophers:Reduce dense, succulent roots near beds; avoid over-irrigation that makes soil easy to tunnel./li>
Moles: They chase grubs and earthworms. Improving drainage and managing grub populations helps. For moles, cleaner turf ecology is half the battle and answers how to deal with gopher–like damage when it’s actually mole-driven.
6. Use “main run” traps correctly (gophers)
If you’re leaning toward trapping for removing gophers, placement matters more than the brand. Expose the main tunnel between two fresh mounds (usually 6–12 inches below the surface). Set two opposing traps (e.g., cinch or box-style) facing opposite directions so you cover both travel ways. This is the practical side of how to catch gophers in your yard that most quick tutorials skip.
7. Harpoon or scissor traps (moles)
Moles patrol surface runs repeatedly. Step on the ridge to flatten a 12–18-inch section and mark it. If it re-rises within a day, set a harpoon or scissor trap over that spot. This is the safest, most targeted approach for how to get rid of gophers in the lawn when the culprit is actually a mole.
8. Ask the hard question: How do I kill gophers (and should you?)
Some homeowners decide that lethal methods are necessary to protect their landscaping. When it comes to how to eliminate gophers or moles, traps remain the most targeted and effective option. Poison baits can harm pets and non-target wildlife, while fumigants and gas cartridges often underperform in loose or loamy soil with multiple vent openings.
If you choose lethal control, pairing traps with exclusion barriers offers a clearer path for how to get rid of gopher problems while minimizing broader environmental impact.
9. How do you get rid of gophers without killing them
Prefer not to harm animals? You still have effective tools:
- Barriers and baskets (Tips 3 & 4)
- Castor-based repellent (Tip 2)
- Targeted irrigation changes (less easy-to-dig soil)
- Live-capture traps (where legal) followed by relocation with proper permits
Used together, these constitute a solid, ethical plan for how to get gophers out of your yard gently.
10. Myth check: Does baking soda kill gophers?
Short answer: It’s unreliable and not recommended. Baking-soda “recipes” can harm soil biology, pets, or beneficial insects while barely impacting tunnel systems. If you’re serious about how to get rid of gophers, invest your time in proven tactics, barriers, correct trap placement, and habitat tweaks.
Lawn-specific playbook: How to get rid of gophers (and moles) in your lawn
Lawns make tunneling easy. For gopher issues, combine baskets around ornamental plantings, a boundary barrier along the fence, and traps in the highest-activity runs. For moles, sharpen the focus on soil insects (grubs), moisture management, and scissor/harpoon trapping in active surface runs. This solves how to get rid of gophers in the yard–type damage, whether the culprit gnaws roots (gophers) or chases worms (moles).
Garden beds: How to get rid of gophers from your yard without losing your harvest
Raised beds are a dream for exclusion. Staple ½-inch hardware cloth to the bottom of the frame before filling with soil. That one step turns a raised bed into a fortress and answers how to get rid of gophers in grass–adjacent beds where tunnels keep appearing. If you rotate crops, keep the hardware cloth in place and just refresh the soil as needed.
From here, protecting the rest of your yard is about layering defenses. These garden-specific tips expand on the main strategies above:
1. If your yard borders open space: broaden the perimeter
Properties near canyons, fields, or greenbelts are more exposed to wildlife intrusions, which means a stronger defense is essential. Extending the barrier fence (Tip 4) beyond the rear fence line, where possible, is one of the most effective strategies for how to get rid of gophers pressure before it becomes a full-blown infestation each season.
2. When tunneling is everywhere: stack your tactics
If you’re still seeing daily mounds, stack three steps at once, your best bet for how to get rid of gophers in the yard:
1. Repellent to shift behavior away from garden beds.
2. Traps in verified active runs.
3. A weekend barrier project on the most vulnerable side of your property.
3. Maintain, don’t just react
Yards that succeed in how to get rid of gophers in the lawn long-term share one thing in common: a maintenance mindset. Monthly walk-throughs to stomp ridges, quick repellent treatments along beds, and resetting a couple of traps at the first sign of fresh activity. Ten minutes a month beats a spring-long battle.
4. Call pros when it’s beyond DIY
Steep slopes, kids and pets in the yard, or weekend-tight schedules? That’s when specialists earn their keep. Local expertise matters; soil type, irrigation habits, and native wildlife all affect strategy. If you’re in Southern California, you can start a plan right away, or book focused gopher control for fast relief. We also serve the region broadly, including pest control in Orange County and pest control in the Inland Empire.
6 FAQs About Getting Rid of Gophers & Moles
1. How do I catch gophers in my yard?
Wear gloves to reduce scent, set traps in the straight “highway” tunnel (not the side pocket), and anchor traps so you don’t lose them in collapses. Re-check at dawn and dusk.
2. How do I get rid of gophers in my lawn and veggie beds?
Treat them separately: raised beds with hardware cloth bottoms keep roots safe while you resolve lawn tunnels. That division helps you keep harvesting even while removing gophers elsewhere.
3. How do I keep gophers away after I finally get things under control?
Maintain barriers, add root baskets to new plantings, and run a quick repellent stripe around beds each month during peak season. Ten minutes now avoids weeks of repair later.
4. How do I deal with gophers when they return every spring?
Expect seasonal pressure. Set two traps and a small repellent perimeter at the first fresh mound. Early action answers how to get gophers out of your yard before damage spreads.
5. How do I get rid of a singular gopher?
That’s the time to act. One well-placed trap in the main run plus a quick repellent ring around nearby beds often resolves a single animal quickly.
Bringing it All Together
You’ve got options: humane or lethal, quick fixes or long-term safeguards. The real secret to how to get rid of gophers or moles is stacking tactics, identifying the animal correctly, setting traps in the right place, using deterrents to protect high-value areas, and installing at least one structural barrier where it counts. That combination answers the full spread of questions.
If you want a faster, guided path, we’re here to help with inspection, trapping, and prevention that lasts. Get started with a tailored plan and lean on focused gopher control if the tunnels keep popping up. Contact us today!
Clean lawn. Protected roots. Zero guesswork. That’s the goal.