Still battling ants

[Southern Gardener]

They arent in the house anymore because I have an exterminator coming out every month he sprays in the house and the outside parameter.

Today it was nice and balmy so I mulched a ton of leaves and put them in my flower beds I pulled back the pine straw and ants were everywhere. Its so frustrating! Ive tried everything and nothing seems to work

un

 

[Wildsky]

Have you tried DE? (Diatomaceous earth)
I've had some success with it...... it doesn't kill them instantly, but they certainly don't like it, and avoid it - and they do eventually die if they get it on them.

 

[Southern Gardener]

Yep - they just crawl around it... I have to put a ton of it in my chicken coop to keep them off my chickens...

 

[patandchickens]

I don't know what to tell you except that I have the same problem (in the garden, not in the house) but only in areas with sandy well-draining soil. So it is POSSIBLE (but I make no guarantees whatsoever) that if you could amend the soil to have a whole big lot more organic material, the ants might go looking for other places to live. I have not tried this myself. I've tried chasing 'em out with boiling water, and using ant bait, but all I ever succeeded in was getting them to move, like, two feet to the left (usually into a more valuable plant clump!), and frankly if ALL the ant colonies just move two feet to the left it does not do one bit of good.

Me, I've just resigned myself to the sandy areas having lotsa ants, and thus I only plant things there that can live with, or actually appreciate, the ant colonies (things that enjoy superb drainage and won't get buried by 'hills' that develop). And on the one day a year that the colonies release gajillions of flying ants, I have learned not to walk around outside with my mouth open

Good luck,

Pat

 

[Southern Gardener]

Pat,

Yes, it seems that's what they do is just move two feet over - I've tried baits, the borax method, ant poision and nothing seems to work - I've never tried boiling water though. I added lots of shredded leaves to my gardens over the weekend -maybe that will help? Also, will the ants ruin the soil as far as taking nutrients?

 

[patandchickens]

While I do not Know in an academic sense, I can't think why ants would be detrimental to the nutrient status of the soil except insofar as they make it awfully freely-draining (which can let water soluble things like N leach thru faster). If anything I suppose I could imagine ants to slightly contribute to soil fertility (?). The main thing that I see with the ants in my gardens though is that they make the soil so loose and light that the water just whooshes right thru and on out the bottom. Which actually some plants LIKE. I am learning to plan those beds around those plants

BTW if you should try boiling water remember it will harm or kill any plants it hits too. Personally I wouldn't bother on account of the 'two feet to the left' thing.

If you ever do find something that works well, including major organic amendments, I'd sure like to hear about it!

Pat

 

[Rio_Lindo_AZ]

I heard that if you draw a circle around the aunt hole with chalk, they will not cross the line. You can also try introducing grass hoppers to your aunts there are also some plants that ants hate.
Maybe there are some plants in your yard that attract them?

:coolsun

 

[sebrightlover]

We found a clove powder for the yard a few years back and that finally killed our ant problem. I've not been able to find it since though.

 

[Hencackle]

seabrightlover--clove powder as in the spice, or did it have some other "active ingredient" mixed with it?

As for the boiling water treatment, I'd have to boil my house, my yard, everything...these little black ants are everywhere. One of my neighbor puts plain ol' Johnson's baby powder along her windowsills and kitchen counter tops and swears it works, but I can't stand the smell and I don't want that white powder all over everything else.

I remember somebody at BYC posted about using cornmeal...since my ants are so small, would corn flour work?

We didn't have the ant problem until 1-1/2 or 2 years ago, so I'm guessing the drier weather kept most of the ant colonies from getting drowned out.

 

[Southern Gardener]

You can get clove powder at a health food store - I'm guessing it's not the same thing?

Hencackle, it sounds like you are having the same problem as me. I finally relented and called an exterminator and I haven't had an ant in the house since. I don't know what to do about my beds and yard -