Knowledgebase

Safety of Gardening after application of chloramine #868408

Asked May 14, 2024, 2:10 PM EDT

Upon returning home from a 2-week vacation, I found the earth berms around our resident with an "infestation" of moles .. a spiderweb of tunnels going in every direction. I went on the internet and found that introducing a mixture of ammonia and bleach was an effective way to kill gophers (creating chloramine gas when mixed). I carefully placed these chemicals into the berms to get rid of the moles. The chemicals were placed in the berms about one week ago. QUESTION: Would you consider it OK to plant a garden in the locations shown in the attached illustration, i.e., one garden bed about 27 feet away from the application area; the primary garden about 75 feet away on the other side of our yard?

Washington County Oregon

Expert Response

Wow. I am glad nobody was injured or killed in creating essentially toxic mustard gas in your yard. In the future, I would strongly recommend writing to AskExtension for some safe and proven pest management techniques or employing a licensed wildlife control operator. I cannot tell from your figure that the animals you encountered were actually moles. From your description, I actually doubt that ID. In any case, my expertise is in wildlife, not chemical safety + human health. I would strongly recommend asking your doctor or possibly even your fire department whether any active product is likely still in your soil. 
Dr. Dana Sanchez Replied May 14, 2024, 8:46 PM EDT

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