Szechuan pepper vs. voles

[VanDell]

Hi!

I found this interesting article http://www.bioedonline.org/picks/news.cfm?art=894 about stopping voles from eating the crops of plants by spraying extracts from Szechuan pepper.

Anybody got experience with that?

Greetings from Germany,

[Alan_L]

Interesting!

This is something I've never thought about (from the article):

But it is important to ensure the voles have an alternative food source, says Epple. "If the voles get really hungry, they may prefer to eat irritating food rather than starve to death,"

It makes sense that voles need to eat *something*, but has anybody researched what plants voles *prefer* to eat? (Hopefully bamboo isn't #1 on the list) Then maybe it's a matter of not only using pepper, castor oil and other deterrents, but also providing some plants that the voles are allowed or encouraged to eat.

[ghmerrill]

on our property, we have tons of heavy rooted plants- one, called wild "carrot", seems to be the prefered food in winter, as I have seen many mounds next to those types of plants. I think maybe controll measures around the bamboos, plus killing off native food plants may cause them to starve, and reduce the population. I did try some ground cayenne pepper mixed with water around some plants, It did not work.

[GrowingHabit]

True Szechuan peppercorns haven't been available in the US in years. Some bright bulb got the idea it was a risk to citrus crops to import them, though I've yet to discover the article that shows even a hint of a suspicion of a link between the two.

Recently, szechuan peppercorn hulls have become available, but they are far less strong than the real heart of the 'pepper'. Its interesting though- szechuan peppercorns are much closer to camphor than pepper- and smell just like camphor when fresh. Very strong. The hulls only have a bare whiff of scent to them. I wonder if an actual camphor oil, or a product of some sort based on camphor, would be effective in the peppercorns' place, as a deterrent?

[mantis]

True Szechuan peppercorns haven't been available in the US in years. Some bright bulb got the idea it was a risk to citrus crops to import them, though I've yet to discover the article that shows even a hint of a suspicion of a link between the two.

Here is what Wiki has to say...

Importation ban

From 1968 to 2005, the United States Food and Drug Administration banned the importation of Sichuan peppercorns because they were found to be capable of carrying citrus canker (as the tree is in the same family, Rutaceae, as the genus Citrus). This bacterial disease, which is very difficult to control, could potentially harm the foliage and fruit of citrus crops in the U.S. It was never an issue of harm in human consumption. The import ban was only loosely enforced until 2002 [3]. In 2005, the USDA and FDA lifted the ban, provided the peppercorns are heated to around 70 degrees Celsius (160 degrees Fahrenheit) to kill the canker bacteria before importation.

Taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sichuan_pe ... tation_ban

[GrowingHabit]

If the ban is lifted, the information still hasn't reached all the Asian import stores I frequent- even the huge metro ones I visit when I can. They're still selling only the hulls. Hope the actual 'pepper' makes its way back to stores soon.

I knew it was a canker association- but never discovered an article where it was anything more than "found to be capable of" carrying the canker- no actual infection found in the peppercorns, as far as I know.

I really miss cooking with it!