In order to keep gophers out of an area you must dig a trench 3 – 6 feet deep and put a wire fence with a close mesh to keep them from burrowing under. Typically, gophers only dig tunnels so the underground exclusion is the most important factor to concentrate on.
You have to do this around your whole property making the time, cost and true feasibility not worth it unless you have very expensive flowers. When they come, what most homeowners and property owners choose to do it deal with them. Most people will get on the internet and find a solution. I can not tell you how many times I have gone to a house with a gopher hole with in a foot of one of these devices. Bottom line – don’t waste your money.
Another home remedy for the novice I see is to drown them with a water hose. Not impossible, the likelihood of this being successful is very low. Gopher’s holes are designed for their safety. They plug their holes to keep light, rain and predators out and they have many runways in different directions. A garden hose will have a tough time getting enough water fast enough to drown a gopher and it still has the option to just pop out of one of its holes to escape the water.
Smoke bombs are often sold in hardware stores and can have limited success. You must plug all holes with the smoke bombs to have a chance. The idea is to kill the gopher with carbon monoxide but usually the holes do fill with enough smoke to choke out the well hidden and protected pest.
Another way to set a trap is dig out a recently used gopher hole and place a trap at the entrance with light shining through the trap. Light shinning through a gopher hole is very dangerous to the well being of the gopher and it will go to plug the hole and investigate ‘s entrance. When the gopher comes to the trap’s entrance it trips the trap and ‘no more gopher’.
Pest control service companies such as mine based in Riverside CA, we perform gopher extermination and will warranty the work performed. If you live in an area next to wildlife or open fields you may need a monthly service to take care of your problem.
More facts on gophers and general pest control can be found on my website at
https://riversidepestcontrolservices.com
