From beetles to moles

I know I have mentioned the Japanese Beetle problem we have munching on our vegetable leaves. Well I did not realize that this is also linked to the moles we have in our yard, and we do have a mole issue!
If you are a regular, than you have seen my cat, big, outgoing, basically lounges around the yard and occasionally stands over one of the mole holes. I have not seen him with a mole yet and frankly cannot imagine him catching one. He did at one point stalk the bird feeder and catch the more "slower" birds, bat them around but did not directly kill them and let alone eat them. I think the bird feeder was about the right height for him to pounce his prey. I say "was" due to the fact he hasn't done this in a few years.
Back to the mole issue! My new issue of Organic Gardening came with a nice supplement called Miracle Garden Potions which gives several homemade cures to combat diseases and pest. The moles are busy eating the grubs which come from the beetles that lay eggs and hatch into root-eating grubs. There is the cycle! Amazing how nature works. Here are the ways to defeat the beetles and grubs which will probably increase the mole population at your neighbor's house. Some of you might like that!

*Pick beetles by hand in the morning since they are sluggish during this time and drop them in a soapy water solution. Once deceased, throw them out in your compost pile.

*Place and old sheet or opened newspaper under your plants and shake beetles on to it. Again drop them in the soapy water and do the same as above.

*Work on your grub issue by spraying your lawn with milky disease spore. This is sold at garden stores which is a combination of Bacillus popilliae and Bacillus lentimorbus. Grubs eat the spores and then die.

*Japanese beetles like full sun so if you have plants that you value, place them in a partial sun/shade area. Any of your shade tolerant plants will be spared from the beetles.

And there is your home work for this week! I have a recipe for mole repellent I am going to post in the next several days. I can tell you moles do not like it as much as humans! Happy beetle hunting!