Potatoes & Voles

[DrakeMaiden]

Some voles seem to have discovered my potato patch. Of course they have to sample just about every potato, rather than choose one and eat it whole. :/

My potatoes are at the point where the foliage is beginning to die back (not quite the best time to harvest). I'm thinking I might just cut my losses and harvest them now, even though they won't store well.

Anyone have any advice or words of wisdom?

 

[barefootgardener]

Well drakemaiden are the voles digging down and nibbling on the potatoes or are your potatoes peeking through the top of your soil now? If the later is the case and your foliage hasnt quite died back yet you might try to hill your potatoes by covering them with more garden soil so their not so noticeable to the voles and it will help your potatoes to continue to grow and ripen until the rest of your foliage dies back. It is better to hill any potatoes peeking through the soil because sometimes sunlight on potatoes will keep them green prematurely and that is not what you want. Otherwise if they are digging down and getting your taters then maybe it would be best to dig them up now before you have none left....maybe someone else might have a better solution for you for even controlling the voles...Good Luck

 

[DrakeMaiden]

Thank you, barefootgardener.

It seems the voles are both tunneling down and also unearthing some on the top of the soil. We are getting attacked on all sides!

I will probably pull them, but my husband and I were also considering trying to transplant the potato plants (with as many potatoes as possible) elsewhere. We may experiment with a few and see how badly transplanting will effect them.