Ants!!!

Dirt has been pushed out of one of my flower boxes thru the slats and above
the top. After moving the dirt I saw all these ants and sprayed. How can I get rid of them besides taking the phlox out and emptying it!?
Thanks! Carol =^•.•^=__?

There are baits/poisons that can be sprinkled on the surface of the soil. The ants carry it into the nest and poison the queen....the nest dies out.

We use a variety of the baits here to get rid of fire ants like Amdro and Spectracide. I haven't had a problem with damage to the plants from the baits....but surely from the ants destroying plant roots.


http://www.kness.com/ants-no-more-ant-bait-station

http://doubledanger.com/living-green/10-tips-for-organic-ant-control

http://voices.yahoo.com/getting-rid-garden-pests-ants-garden-killers-5911884.html?cat=32

http://www.organicgardening.com/learn-and-grow/fire-ant-control

I just read that spinosad was good for ant removal. I have never tried it but would love to know if others have and what the results were. I am curious if it could be used for fire ants also.

I found this on spinosad and fire ants....Hmmmm

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/05/040510014001.htm

http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/plants/pdf/hgic1263.pdf

Thanks for the links themoonhowl.

You are most welcome.Seedfork. Interesting info.

Moon

Thanks so much!
So much rain seems to have brought an upsurge of ants this year.
Ill check the links later. Carol =^•.•^=__?

Good Luck Carol. Hope you get them under control quickly.

If they aren't fireants and you can live with them it's a good idea to do so because they control aphids, if not a good effective and inexpensive way is to mix equal parts of sugar and borax with water into a thin paste. The ants will take it back to the queen and kill the colony

I thought that ants farmed aphids, I guess that is a form of control, but I don't think that is the type of control sailstheseas was looking for. I know ants do occasionally eat a few aphids, but they are better known for using the aphids and encouraging them to hang around and make honey dew or what ever it is called. The ants like to eat that more so than the aphids themselves.

Yeah, they "milk" them like we do cows. I may have been misinformed about that. But, like I said, the Borax and Sugar works great. My mother in law has had ants in her porch for all 8 years I've been a part of that family and they tried everything. When I found out about the sugar and Borax, it wiped them clean. It was pretty unbelievable.

i have a ton of little ants on my wisteria and trumpet vine but don't know where they're coming from. Where do i put the borax/sugar/water mix?
Thanks.

Snarva, anywhere you can see the ants, preferably in large numbers. They will take the sugar and borax back to the nest and feed it to the queen

i'll try it. Thanks!!

I searched every market near me but couldn't find Borax. I tried Boraxo (borax mixed with hand soap)but that didn't work. Any other ideas?
Thanks!

Try reducing the amount of Borax. It takes the right balance, I've had it work with countless friends and family members but next time you are out ask the pest center for some TERRO traps. It's a popular trap that is intended to kill the queen. Good luck :( I hope you find a way to get rid of them soon and cheap

Hi Snarva, you may have to get the Boric acid from the pharmacy...it doesn't need a prescription and isn't very expensive, but you don't often see it anywhere else. Most items listed as Borax have soap in them, and Boric acid is the active ingredient for Borax products.

Yes, what Themoonhowl said. I didn't even think about that. Borax is sold as a cleanser and so it is usually already mixed with soap which is why the ants won't touch the "Boraxo". A pharmacy should be able to get you pure boric acid and then retry the sugar procedure. It will work