What are these ants doing?

[Noodlesoups]

The entire growing season I have been observing these small black ants doing who knows what with these other bugs. It looks like they are cultivating them and they don't go anywhere else on the plant besides the leaves that the other bugs are on.

 

[Chuck]

The entire growing season I have been observing these small black ants doing who knows what with these other bugs. It looks like they are cultivating them and they don't go anywhere else on the plant besides the leaves that the other bugs are on.View attachment 4001

The ants are farming aphids. They will actually move the aphids around in order to eat and harvest the aphids sugary excrement. Spray with Spinosad

 

[Noodlesoups]

That's what I suspected, I have never gotten to see it up close before! I have always found ants to be interesting.

 

[ChanellG]

Just spray homemade soap spray on the aphids. In fact, since ants don't like peppermint, you could add some to the spray to deter them while you get the destructive aphids off your peppers. Soap kills aphids almost instantly and doesn't poison your garden. Win-win.

 

[zigs]

I put a Ladybird on a plant with an aphid farm, it picked off some aphids and then ran to the top of the plant and hid behind a flower before the ants came back.

It was still there the following day, but there were a lot less aphids

 

[Rosyrain]

Oooh Aphids gross me out and they will take out your entire plant. It is probably a good thing what the ants are doing, but it is best to get rid of the bugs. I had a couple of plants totally infested a couple of years ago and I was not a happy camper.

 

[peachdejour]

This almost reminds me of this plant my mom planted in the front garden. In order for the flower to bloom, the black ants have to eat the film off the bud. The ants are so drawn to this plant and the buds that they don't come in the house. I have no idea what plant it is, but the flowers are beautiful with very tall stalks. I have never seen aphids before this picture. That's a very interesting symbiotic relationship though. My daughter would be one to discover it in our yard and I would sadly have to spray it away. Then, I would get a phone call from her father about showing a bad example about the value of life. I got this call once when I let her cut a worm in half to see if it would regenerate. She was curious....

 

[Gina145]

Oooh Aphids gross me out and they will take out your entire plant. It is probably a good thing what the ants are doing, but it is best to get rid of the bugs. I had a couple of plants totally infested a couple of years ago and I was not a happy camper.

What the ants are doing is only good for the ants and maybe for the aphids. The ants want the aphids to stay on that plant so that they provide the sticky substance the ants enjoy, but as long as they remain there the plant is being harmed.

One of the first things I learnt when I joined my bonsai club is that ants wandering around a tree are usually a sign that there is a pest of some sort there that shouldn't be there. As peachdejour mentioned, however, there are exceptions.

 

[Nikkishea21]

Ants can really be annoying at times. In the middle of digging up an area they just decide to pounce and the ones i have around are those that will bite the living crap out of you. They are so tiny you would think they are harmless, but stick around long enough to find out and you will regret it. I use ants powder on them when i can.

 

[peachdejour]

Ants can really be annoying at times. In the middle of digging up an area they just decide to pounce and the ones i have around are those that will bite the living crap out of you. They are so tiny you would think they are harmless, but stick around long enough to find out and you will regret it. I use ants powder on them when i can.

The big black ones have a pretty painful bite. I remember my sophmore year of college the program house I was living in was invested with these big black ants when we moved in, but the maintenance guys couldn't use the spray because i was pregnant. They decided to use traps, which worked, but took longed to solve the problem. Needless to say, I got quite a few ant bites before the problem was eradicated. This house that we just bought also had a very bad ant problem when we first moved in. With all of my health issues, we decided that traps were the best solution. It took care of them within a week. I have a backup pack of traps for spring just in case. I did find an ant hill close to the house and poured some vinegar on it for good measure. I have no idea if vinegar does anything, but vinegar seems to be a good solution for most household problems.

 

[Mockingbird]

I put a Ladybird on a plant with an aphid farm, it picked off some aphids and then ran to the top of the plant and hid behind a flower before the ants came back.

It was still there the following day, but there were a lot less aphids

Is a ladybird a ladybug? Yes I see it is. I have tons of these around here so I do not really see ants anymore. I used to see them occasionally on the mock orange bush. The ladybugs love the smell of roses. I have to ask though is there a difference between the red ones and the yellow ones- other then the obvious color-

Ants are terrible creatures, especially the carpenter ants. I know there is a balance in nature so I don't try to go out and exterminate the ants but still I hate when I find one crawling on me. Luckily we are to far North for things like red ants and fire ants. We do have nasty spiders, some have those creepy bouncy eyes UGH!

 

[zigs]

Yep, Ladybird in England, Ladybug in USA, Ladyboy in Thailand, different thing there

 

[peachdejour]

Yep, Ladybird in England, Ladybug in USA, Ladyboy in Thailand, different thing there

I was wondering what a ladybird was when I was reading your post. I actually thought "wouldn't he be worried his pet bird would fly away?" Now, I have learned something new! And now I know how to deal with aphids too!

 

[Pat]

I have always controled aphids on my plants with a soapy wash, I actually wash the leaves like I am washing the dishes. If it is a potted plant I will take the plant outside and wash it down.

 

[zigs]

I have always controled aphids on my plants with a soapy wash, I actually wash the leaves like I am washing the dishes. If it is a potted plant I will take the plant outside and wash it down.

That's illegal in Europe, bet you wish you had lawmakers like ours

I was wondering what a ladybird was when I was reading your post. I actually thought "wouldn't he be worried his pet bird would fly away?" Now, I have learned something new! And now I know how to deal with aphids too!

I had a bird friend once, opened the front door and he was stood there, said tweet and hopped indoors. Gave it some food and water and he stayed

Couldn't fly, but he used to hop up onto the back of the sofa and glide down.

Never had a cage, just used to live in the house with us and roost where he wanted to.

Stayed with us till he died. Called him Bird, and he never said anything other than tweet