Voles – Resistant bulbs

Q: I have had issues with voles for years. I’ve lost hosta, heuchera, painted fern, dogwood and nandina. What bulbs are resistant to the vole’s diet?

A: As you’ve found, mouse-like voles eat almost everything. They scissor through the center of perennials and girdle the stems of woody plants. They rarely bother narcissus, scilla, puchkina and muscari bulbs. If you want to experiment with repellents, some gardeners swear by using expanded slate soil conditioner (PermaTill, VoleBloc, etc) in their beds.