Large black ants laying eggs on the leaves of my potato plants?

[SunshineAndSoil]

Hey everyone,
I've been having a problem with the leaves of my potato plants having little holes in them like they are being eaten, and the other day I noticed that on the undersides of a few of the leaves there were several large black ants, along with lots of teeny tiny black balls, probably ant eggs. Do ants eat potato leaves? How do I get rid of them? The potatoes are approximately almost 3 months old. I am in growing zone 7, if that helps.

 

[Meadowlark]

Welcome SunshineAndSoil,

I've been growing potatoes for 1/2 century and have never had ants damage potato leaves...but there is always a first time. I have, however, seen leaf damage due to the Colorado Potato Beetle. It is actually very common.

The best treatment I've found is...appropriately named "Colorado Potato Beetle Beater" is highly effective and safe to use. Its primary ingredient is Spinosad. There are other similar products w/Spinosad and all considered organic.

I suspect it will help with your problem...whether it is ants or not.

 

[SunshineAndSoil]

Thanks a lot Meadowlark, I'll look into that.

 

[SunshineAndSoil]

I have found a insect killer designed for use in gardens that says it works on a plethora of insects(there was a huge list). The active ingredient is Spinosad, and people in the reviews have said that it worked great for them in their vegetable gardens. Hopefully it will get rid of whatever insect that's bugging my plants.