Q&A - How do I stop an armadillo from
tearing up my garden?
Question:
My gardens are battlefields. I won the rabbit invasion (for now), but have a new problem. Something is rutting up my gladiola bulbs, and late tomato plants. We suspect our resident armadillo. These are not being eaten just pushed up and left. Could we be right? How do we stop this armadillo from destroying our garden?
Answer:
This damage of plants that have been uprooted but not eaten is typical of armadillos. Armadillos eat insects in the ground. It is probably easiest to trap the armadillo and then take care of it. Armadillos are nocturnal and so they can be hard to see at night. Putting wings on the trap with boards will help funnel the armadillo into the trap. Another option is to build an armadillo exclusion fence. The fence need to be angled out at 40 degrees so the armadillo can’t climb it.
The publication Mike Dennison referred to is: Armadillos
Related Resources:
Armadillos in Missouri: Techniques to Prevent and Control Damage
Armadillo Damage Management
Baiting the Nine-banded Armadillo
My gardens are battlefields. I won the rabbit invasion (for now), but have a new problem. Something is rutting up my gladiola bulbs, and late tomato plants. We suspect our resident armadillo. These are not being eaten just pushed up and left. Could we be right? How do we stop this armadillo from destroying our garden?
Answer:
This damage of plants that have been uprooted but not eaten is typical of armadillos. Armadillos eat insects in the ground. It is probably easiest to trap the armadillo and then take care of it. Armadillos are nocturnal and so they can be hard to see at night. Putting wings on the trap with boards will help funnel the armadillo into the trap. Another option is to build an armadillo exclusion fence. The fence need to be angled out at 40 degrees so the armadillo can’t climb it.
The publication Mike Dennison referred to is: Armadillos
Related Resources:
Armadillos in Missouri: Techniques to Prevent and Control Damage
Armadillo Damage Management
Baiting the Nine-banded Armadillo