My vote is for the voles. About 6 years ago, I bought a number of flats of different colours of Viola cornuta. Before I could get them in the ground, I noticed that when I moved the trays, I would find little piles of snipped off flowers and foliage, hidden here and there. I noticed a hole beside the concrete of the foundation, and kept an eye on it now and then, and several times saw voles disappear down, with a flower or foliage stem. Traps were set, and quite a few voles were trapped.
I just noticed another few piles forming, after returning from the Okanagan with some more flats of Pansies this time.
Shall have to get out the new scented plastic traps, and see if they work.
I do mentally tell the voles that they are in danger, and to move along if they value their lives. We do however also have tunnelling Moles, that produce the runways for the voles and mice to get under the Daylilies and other fleshy plant roots. They seem to have a ball underground. I've lost some favourite Daylilies the last few winters: Jason Salter, First Knight, Golden Prize, Shady Lady, Night Beacon, Mae Graham, and Yazoo Wild Violet.
Last fall, we tried something new: cutting out the bottoms of one and 2 gallon pots and crimping a wire mesh around the outside of the pot before inserting it into the area where the tunnels are extensive. Two or three fans that escaped the ravages of the rodents, were planted in the submerged pots. We'll see how they make out this summer.
So far this spring, we've caught 3 Moles in the Tunnel Traps.
When the Elk came this spring, (just after the snow left and many rains turned the ground to mush), they sunk into a number of the tunnels, especially near the edge of the bank. It looked like a war zone there for awhile. When it was dry enough, my garden helper stuffed moth balls and cayenne into the holes and filled them up with new soil on top. I hope the voles won't feel quite so welcome anymore.
Apparently the moles are after grubs, and create the tunnels that the voles then use as their stomping grounds for harvesting any roots that dangle down in front of them.
We'll see how this works out. I do love the wealth of flowers that I've brought to this small and final garden. I feel such a burst of gratitude for the plants that do well. I wish we could all work in harmony.
