Gophers

The signs are unmistakable. You stroll out for a look around the garden and notice neat piles of crumbly, fresh looking earth. You’ve got gophers! Let them be and maybe they’ll leave, but more likely if they suddenly disappear, its because you have hungry predators looking out for you. Nature is the best solution. Gophers are a favorite food of many predators including, hawks, owls, egrets, herons, weasels and various snakes (including rattlers), coyotes and bob cats. If you have healthy populations of those predators in your canyon there is a good chance they will take care of things for you.

If nature fails, I’ve had the best luck over the years with a garden hose to get the gophers. Look for the freshest pile of earth very early in the morning. The gopher will be nearby in most cases. Stick the hose in the hole and turn it on. Watch the surrounding area for movement. The gopher will stick his head up from another hole if the water overtakes him/her.

Simply reach into the hole with BBQ tongs and lift it out. Watch it, they have big teeth. Since they are important food for local predators it would be nice if you took it into the canyon, or the nearest native patch of land and release it into the chaparral. I’m not sure my wildlife biologist friends agree with catch and release, but food is scarce out there so why not?