Homemade Gopher Repellent

Gophers, while beautiful creatures, can cause tremendous damage to lawns and gardens. It does not take long for a single gopher to destroy an entire landscape by digging holes through soil and feeding off nearby vegetation. There are a few repellents you can create right at home, to get rid of gophers and keep your lawn looking great.

Dryer sheets typically used for laundry are also a great repellent for gophers. They do not like the strong scent emitted from these sheets, and an entire box of dryer sheets can be purchased for a few dollars. When gophers become a problem, stick a few sheets in each gopher hole opening, then cover the hole with soil. This also works well for garden moles, another lawn pest that digs tunnels throughout the lawn and garden.

Coffee grounds also give off a strong odor that gophers find unpleasant. Sprinkle some fresh coffee grounds around gopher holes, as well as through the yard and garden. Alternately, recycle your used coffee grounds from your morning pot of coffee. Brew the coffee, and spread the used grounds through the yard and soil. Coffee grounds have an added bonus, as they work to fertilize the lawn and soil, creating an attractive, pest-free landscape.

Used cat litter will also repel gophers, as they are frightened by the scent of cats. When changing cat litter, sprinkle the used litter in gopher holes and around areas that gophers are present. This also scares away garden moles, which are also repelled by the scent of one of their main enemies, the feline.

The sounds emitted from a portable radio will also repel gophers, as well as other garden pests like moles. Place a small battery-operated portable radio in a plastic bag, turn on a low volume, and place near areas where gophers are problematic. Leave overnight, or as needed to keep these lawn pests away.