Ants problem

[Emmanuel_Albazi]

Hello everyone...
Every summer we face an ant problem in our small garden, they appear out of nowhere . The problem is that there are more than one species (including big ants) and there are many ants hole in the soil that it covered with grass. My mother used a lot of pesticides (both powder and liquid) and they worked fine for short periods of time but the ants returned again.
So is there any helpful tip/tips for how to get rid of those ants?

 

[Mystic Moon Tree]

We use Tarot. Both the pellet bait outside and the syrup bait on cardboard squares inside. It is harmless to people & pets, but is brought back to the collony & kills them off. We also repell them from comming inside with cinnamon & nutmeg sprinkled at door jams & window sills. You can also encourage them away from the garden with catch crops.

 

[roadrunner]

I don't control ants, I see them as a benefit to my plants and soil ecology. They aerate the soil, distribute nutrients and they do keep other pests in balance.

I do understand that they are a nuisance, I hate them crawling on me and I know I eat a ton of them every time I collect food from the garden, especially the leafy stuff, but you get over that stuff.

They also farm aphids, but that's mostly on my non-food crops. There are a lot of myths out there on what can be used to rid your garden of ants, but it's mostly bunk.

If you are determined to fight the ants, here's a video from a guy that busts many of the myths for deterring ants, but he also shows what does work; however, it will be a never-ending battle.

 

[PGB1]

I agree with what Roadrunner said about the ants being important. They were here long before we came along and changed things to suit our desires.

To keep ants in check when the're are zillions of them (hot, dry weather), I attract birds with seed in a feeder. They will also eat the ants. Mourning Doves and Robins are what I most often see picking up ants. House Sparrows are too busy zooming around eating mosquitoes.

If keeping ants out of a certain area is really important to you, ring the area with a very light dusting of diatomaceous earth. Use pure, food grade so that you're not introducing poisonous chemicals into the earth. It repels many ants, but sadly it will kill the ones that walk on it. It'll also kill any other exoskeleton insects. So be certain that you want them dead before proceeding.

Paul

 

[Oliver Buckle]

I make a mix of ant powder and syrup, or honey, and smear it on a piece of slate, then drop matchsticks on it and make a 'sandwich, with another piece of slate. Ants are about the only thing small enough to get in there, so nothing else steals it all, and you spare the useful ground beetles. Then they take it back to the nest and feed it to the larvae, end of nest.
Mostly I leave them though, it's only when they make heaps in the lawn or something.

 

[Tarquin]

Most years an Ants nest is built close to/under our front door step and the blighters find there way under the floor and up through cracks into the hallway. It's been almost impossible to destroy the nest, powder can work but not always.

By chance, having bought some extra strength white vinegar to clear moss and clean the brickwork a nearby garden wall, I sprayed on and around the doorstep where mounds of Ant digging dust had accumulated and hey presto, been clear for a month now! My understanding is that the ph of the soil is changed and they don't like it?

 

[PGB1]

Most years an Ants nest is built close to/under our front door step and the blighters find there way under the floor and up through cracks into the hallway. It's been almost impossible to destroy the nest, powder can work but not always.

By chance, having bought some extra strength white vinegar to clear moss and clean the brickwork a nearby garden wall, I sprayed on and around the doorstep where mounds of Ant digging dust had accumulated and hey presto, been clear for a month now! My understanding is that the ph of the soil is changed and they don't like it?

Brilliant, poison free solution, Tarquin!

One caution is that vinegar (or any acid) can etch concrete & mortar, so rinsing as soon as you can is important.

I had 250 mL of 5% vinegar in a jar at my workshop sink. The jar apparently cracked and the vinegar dripped on the floor, going unnoticed. There was an actual hole all the way through the concrete floor. Oops!
Paul

 

[Tarquin]

Brilliant, poison free solution, Tarquin!

One caution is that vinegar (or any acid) can etch concrete & mortar, so rinsing as soon as you can is important.

I had 250 mL of 5% vinegar in a jar at my workshop sink. The jar apparently cracked and the vinegar dripped on the floor, going unnoticed. There was an actual hole all the way through the concrete floor. Oops!
Paul

The stuff I bought is supposed to be about 40%, with a recommendation to dilute 5 to 1. I've used it diluted 50/50 on brick and no ill effects.

 

[PGB1]

The stuff I bought is supposed to be about 40%, with a recommendation to dilute 5 to 1. I've used it diluted 50/50 on brick and no ill effects.

How did the 40% work on the bricks? We've got some light mortar haze that I could not get off with 5%. (Some haze is years old and some is from new brickwork I did this & last week.) I'm trying to avoid the evils of muriatic acid.

Where did you find the 40% for sale?

Thanks for the advice!
Paul

 

[Tarquin]

How did the 40% work on the bricks? We've got some light mortar haze that I could not get off with 5%. (Some haze is years old and some is from new brickwork I did this & last week.) I'm trying to avoid the evils of muriatic acid.

Where did you find the 40% for sale?

Thanks for the advice!
Paul

Bought it from Ebay over here in the UK.

I have a raised pond which had moss and green on the outer brickwork. I only used the vinegar to clear that but the by product is that it's brightened and cleaned the bricks and mortar as well, although that wasn't obvious for a week or so afterwards.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

Bricks are fired clay, nothing much is going to touch that. It's the mortar between bricks you should treat warily. Getting rid of the excess mortar smudged on the brick, great. Having to repoint because you have also compromised the bonding, not so great.