Fire Ants in Chemical-Free Vegetable Bed

I just found two small active ant mounds located in a prepared garden bed that is designated as a chemical-free zone for organic vegetables. Does anyone have any recommendations on how best to wreck their day without also wrecking mine? I greatly thank you.

Boiling water will do the trick, and no chemicals. Also full strengh vinegar.
Josephine.

frostweed - thank you. I happen to have a gallon of unopened vinegar I bought to make pickled eggs and never found the gumption. That's great. Thanks much for your help.

Careful with the vinegar, though! I poured some full strength on a mound and it killed the grass, 18 inch diameter.

There's a thread that says aspartame will kill them, but of course that's formaldehyde so you probably don't want to use that. There's a product called "results" that I've heard is not harmful, but you'd want to research it I'm sure. It DOES kill the mound.

This is the first year I've been fireant free, except possibly a few in spring (wasn't sure that was fireants). I use a product with a spinosad bait...not sure if that's safe real close to veggies, but I know it's organic. I only use some if I see fireants.

Yes, the vinegar will kill vegetation but only temporarily, of course you don't want it on you vegetable plants, but no poisons with it.
The boiling water will also kill vegetation, but it regrows fast.
Josephine.

And you can minimize the vegetation kill by aiming the stream of boiling water directly into the mound's entrance hole. Yuska

I've tried the apsartame recently.....and although I did see dead & sick ants on the mound a couple of days later,....I also found two smaller "satellite" mound nearby shortly thereafter.....so I'm not sure about it yet.....I had a great opportunity yesterday to rid us of a few "colonies" of fireants when all the flooding of 14" inches of rain ...caused the fireants to evacuate their confines and float, in mass,...on the surface. I just walked around the yard and eliminated the "clumps" of ants with a capful of orange oil each. It should always be so easy to kill an entire colony.

The "aspartame kills fireants" isn't true, according to snopes.com, but an "urban myth" that someone started. Just an FYI so you don't waste time trying it. The vinegar definitely works and I haven't tried the boiling water. I'd probably pour it on myself accidentally since I'm such a klutz, so for me, the vinegar is safer! Somewhere on DG, I also heard someone tried dried molasses and said that fed beneficials as well as killed the fireants. Can't vouch for that since I haven't tried it, but it's another organic possibility.

Well, I wonder if mixing some molasses in with the boiling water would be a good idea?

That would be good for the soil later on after things cool down, but not the beneficial bacteria in the inmediate area, those would be killed by the boiling water, along with the ants.
Josephine.

Petit, are you *absolutely* sure they are Fire Ants? There are good Texas native ants that look a lot like Fire Ants, and those shouldn't be killed. If I see smallish black/red ants congregating, I put my hand or foot down near them. FA will run right at you, the good ants will completely ignore you. Fire Ants don't like competition, so having the good ants doesn't mean you'll also have FA. If they are indeed FA, then just disregard my query.

Carla

Thank you everyone for your help. Carla, One mound is fire ants; I have not examined the second mound very closely.

Petit, I am curious, what did you end up doing about the ants, and how did it work?
Josephine.

Hi Josephine, thanks for asking. We have been experiencing several days of rain and I have not been outside in the past few days to address the issue. I really have not determined what to do. I had a small section of free space next to some Mystery gardenias and Zephirine Drouhin roses that we seized last year for some delicious fall/winter peas, and I am just sort of flummoxed. My lazy side is battling my ambitious self – LOL! Most of our vegetables are in containers, and I am always looking for any space I can acquisition for more veggies.

BTW: Everyone, we found a spectacular product several years ago for fire ants called Max Force. We can only locate Max Force granules at a pool chemical supply in Katy, but it works wonderfully! A little goes a long way. The other product we use on tiny black ants is a brand named Taro. It looks like Karo syrup and one drop takes out legions of the occasional pests!

I've used the vinegar from my coffee pot, after I clean it, to pour on FA mounds. Its just short term pleasure killing those ants, because it sure won't get 'em all. I've heard, but haven't tried yet, that cornmeal spread around the mounds for the ants to eat will work...just be sure to water the mound after the cornmeal is consumed. Supposedly it will make them explode! Cool, huh?

dogmansis - lol - Exploding fire ants certainly does it for me.

Or, how about pouring vinegar AND baking soda on the fire ant hill??? It likely will not do dittly to remedy the problem, but it does my inner-juvenile tremendous pleasure just to picture the chemical reaction reining down wrath on a colony of party-crashers. E-Vile Grin.

Just a note about cornmeal - I would hesitate to use cornmeal in an area intended for direct seed propagation. Only because corn gluten acts as a preemergent natural herbicide and may inhibit germination of vegetable seeds as well as its potential weed seed inhibition.

my mother always told me to sprinkle white rice (uncooked) around a mound...FA find it irritating apparently, but I've tried it, and it really didn't work, lol. She also told me about the corn meal...but I may try that vinegar trick myself....
Melanie

The vinegar/baking soda sounds like "fun"!!

We have been told to scatter instant grits - 1 pkg per mound. Didn't see that it made much difference. I'm sticking w/ UNORGANIC methods ....... so yo organic people, sue me............:>))))

Ann

Sounds like those surly little buggers are enjoying some pretty good Southern hospitality. They have wheedled their hosts into bringing them enough rice and grains to please Paula Wolfert! Next, they will be demanding gravy with their grits! ;-)

Say, come to think about it, I do know someone whose gravy recipe just might kill ‘em. lol


This message was edited Oct 22, 2006 12:46 PM

lol petit....

I just got in from pruning and cutting back some tired lookin' growth in the back rock garden and ran into some dadburn fireants. So I ran inside and got some vinegar and poured some on the mound. Is it suppose to foam and sizzle when it hits the dirt? lol...mine did. : / Fireants just sort of looked a bit irritated...lol

Melanie

Melanie, it does foam and sizzle, and if you poured enough into the mound they will all float up together with their eggs, shrivel up and die.
Josephine.

I bet after the rain is over and the ground is wet anyway, it would take less vinegar to get them.

GRITS, not corn meal! That should make the explosion better! Had a boyfriend once, from up North...never had grits and wanted to try 'em, so he ordered ONE grit!...got an odd look!

ROFL

And did the waiter/waitress have the snap to serve him one grit? I love it.

Vinegar will have a sizzly foamy reaction to anything alkaline (hence the fun of sprinkling on baking soda and then pouring on vinegar, but unless there is something alkaline there, it won't.

lol Debbie..can't say that I ever tried grits...or even one grit..lol, but my mama from Va loves em'.... :)

would love to see a grit... Is grits like "pants"? plural or singular i.e. I often hear people speak of "a scissors" but a grits or a pants..... just thinking on paper.....


Ann

FOFL

Ann,

Some farther South might pant for grits. Nevertheless, they never got me that excited.

If it’s in your eye, or up your nose, it’s singular – grit.

If it’s in your bathing suit, that too is grit, as well as very annoying.

Now, I suppose you could have grit in your bathing suit as well as grits ON your bathing suit. Were this the case I would say someone is not properly attired for to receive their meal. --- And wash them off before they clog the pool filter.

But, what I especially hate is grit in my grits. :)


This message was edited Oct 24, 2006 12:27 AM

lmbo...petit_
here, here! I don't ever remember reflecting on the fact that I had grits in my britches, but darn well had quite a bit of grit in em'...lol..I guess too, that fire ants would hardly be attentive to a grit..but would find a mess of grits rather irritating...lol.. :D

Melanie

Of course, true grit is a good thing to have.

Do you have to be in the South to have true grits?

of course not - I'm from TEXAS not the south. My momma was from GA - def. the south. Daddy was from Ohio - def NOT the south. We had true grits and we all liked it -them-whatever - just boiled up w/orw/o gravy but not w/cheese or sugar th eway some folks desicrate them/it. Still trying to find out if grits is singular or plural..............

Ann

lol....I didn't think of true grits.... My mama from Va. likes her grits(grit) with salt and butter... :p

grits

noun (used with a singular or plural verb) Also called hominy grits.

.....whatza verb?


sheesh!

You guys are too funny! Btw, I just bought a couple of pounds of dry (limed) whole corn (hominy) at Central Market for "pasole." Never tried it, but I love to cook. Diana Kennedy has several recipes.

Hominy be good, too. Just like it plain (out of the can) w/s&P and a little butter or *gasp* bacon grease......

Ann

*cough* can't say that I like hominy...err...hominii....lol :p

Ann:
"I'm sticking w/ UNORGANIC methods ....... so yo organic people, sue me............:>))))" ---
"......and a little butter or *gasp* bacon grease......"

I take it that bacon has sufficient nitrites and erythorbates? lol

You go girl! – Just keep the chemicals out of my bacon, gives me a migraine.

Reminds me of an episode of Andy Griffith -- English guy brings Andy his lunch, and Andy says, "wow! hominy grits!" and the Brit replies, "Oh, 30 or 40." (You have to say it all out loud.)