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New Jersey

So i have a pumpkin growing nicely whose OTT measurment is estimating its weight at about 90 pounds at 18 days after pollination.

Groundhog just moved in under the deck and its begun to eat the tender ends of secondary vines and some larger leaves as well. About 15% of the leaves on the plant have been sacrifised as a result of this groundhog, and it just started attacking the plant yesterday. Groundhogs have been the reason that I've failed in all three of my previous seasons but this year for some reason I haven't encountered any problems until now. Shotgun is not an option. Do the trap and release traps actually work? Is flooding the burrow an option? Does bubble gum actually kill these things. Whats the best stuff to put on the pumpkin itself to stop the groundhog from eating it? Please help this is very urgent

7/18/2019 6:32:22 PM

Central NY

Liquid fence for now...have a heart traps with apple or mango works well...how bout a cross bow?

7/18/2019 6:38:56 PM

220 conibear

7/18/2019 6:52:04 PM

Northern Cambria, Pa.

What Don said.

7/18/2019 8:46:08 PM

Morgantown, WV

Traps are very effective if you know where the hole is. Close off all possible areas of escape with a low temporary fence, and create a funnel towards your trap. They don't climb very much, I usually use 2' tall plastic fencing from box store with a few fence posts. Pears, apples, anything sweet works pretty good, but they're not stupid. Leave a bit outside trap, some just inside, then all the way back, so they get a taste and want to keep going.

To go further, if you get one, decide if it is grown or young. If still not fully grown this time of year, there's lots more around as they usually have 3 babies, so 4 more? If adult, you may just have a new adult in the area. Also, if they have been a problem for a few years, it is likely that there are lots of them and will take due diligence to continually lower the amount. Continue setting traps and trying to rid them even in the off season, as they are active creatures.

Good luck, they hone in on the orange ones!

7/18/2019 8:58:29 PM

Morgantown, WV

Also, have a plan on where to put them. I almost got a ticket one time for relocating them as they are considered rodents, and therefore vermin in a lot of municipalities.

If you want to smoke bomb them, you have to close both the entrance, as well as the exit hole for it to be effective. I find it incredibly hard to ever find the exit hole, so I trap and now pop on site.

7/18/2019 9:00:33 PM

stoughton WI

Bb gun, or take a live trap and place it near his hole, then put up silt fence around his hole up to both sides of trap. Good chance he will end up in the trap. Floodi g the hole will not work.

7/18/2019 10:20:19 PM

stoughton WI

No bait needed, and once in live trap either kill it or take more than 5 miles away. I heard yhey will find there way back

7/18/2019 10:22:04 PM

Anamosa, IA BPIowegian@aol.com

You can get poison smoke bombs called Giant Destroyer. If you can run him into the den, plug all of the exits but one light the fuse, toss the smoke bomb in and cover the last hole. He will be history and buried all at once.

7/18/2019 11:16:18 PM

Johnston, R.I.

Have a heart trap with green apples for bait works pretty good here...

7/19/2019 12:31:44 AM

Billerica,Massachusetts

they'll move on from eating the leaves to eating the pumpkins, get rid of them, either bomb them as already stated or get a nice break barrel pellet gun

7/19/2019 6:54:42 AM