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Okay, the ant invasion has begun and I am stuck here with no WMDs.:X
They are everywhere.* In the Planters around the carrots, lettuce, pepper, cucs, dianthus, bach buttons.
I have two small children and a dog, the dog is sweet, but not so smart.* We are looking to find the best organic weapon!
*
[glow=red]WANTED[/glow]
http://www.deadbugsnow.com/images/ant.gif
[glow=red]DEAD, CAPUT, GONZO![/glow]
Oh, I do know how you feel.* I've had a massive invasion of sugar ants in my home and it's been an all out war!*
We need to id your ants so we know what to use.* DO NOT physically try and do something to any ant hills you find.* My hubby did that and the ants moved and set up more colonies.* Now it's a real mess.* I don't remember where you live, but do you know if these are fire ants?* Maybe this will help you to id them.
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/2000/2064.html
Newt
I will do some research and let you know what I think they are.* Thanks for the link!
Some of these ants seem to be tunnling under my plants and killing them from the roots...it's crazy
Carpenter ants are large (¼–1 in) ants indigenous to many parts of the world. They prefer dead, damp wood in which to build nests. Sometimes carpenter ants will hollow out sections of trees. The most likely species to be infesting a house in the United States is the Black carpenter ant, Components pennsylvanicus. However, there are over a thousand other species in the genus Components. Carpenter ant species reside both outdoors and indoors in moist, decaying or hollow wood. They cut "galleries" into the wood grain to provide passageways for movement from section to section of the nest.
-- I kill stray ants with a mixture of liquid dish soap and water in a spray bottle. I believe the liquid soap serves to immobilize the ant and then drown it. It works within seconds. My mother-in-law used a mixture of Simple Green and water to the same effect. Just wipe up with a sponge.
-- Coffee grounds. Make yourself some coffee and just scoop the wet grounds out of the pot and place them in strategic locations. The ants back off. (And if you don't drink coffee, you can still make it and use the grounds.) I used to keep the grounds damp by spraying them with a little water now and then. When the ants start getting bold, use more fresh grounds. After awhile, they just stopped coming!
-- I have found that grease-eating ants (carpenter ants) like a mixture of bacon grease, flour and boric acid. I place it in a small glass jar with holes in the lid (this keeps kids and pets out) and mark the content. Just place outside or near the nest. They will eat it and die over a period of weeks. Use the same type of container for other ants and mix with peanut butter and boric acid, or honey and boric acid. For common sugar ants you can buy little containers of liquid boric acid solution.
In New Zealand, the ants could be quite different, yet they come into homes and often. To keep them out lay small trails of SALT around their entry points. They will go away overnight, desperate to leave, and will not come back in unless the salt gets very old or gets wiped away, this is tested in my own kitchen, and works wonders.
I have an idea that if you have a treasured tree, bush etc and you want to keep the ants away, perhaps lay a circle of salt around the plants you want the ants to stay away from, and leave some other area for them to go to.
1. never add salt to the earth. it will kill the tree
2. Here is some information ive written on natural ant control The Organic Databank - Your natural ant control, natural pest control, organic gardenig Center - Controlling Ants
3. I have many natural ant control videos for you to look at The Organic Databank - Your natural ant control, natural pest control, organic gardenig Center
4. I have also written a ebook Called Dances with Ants Natural Ant Control 2010 The Ebook
that should get you started.
andy
Experiment with cotton balls soaked in ant-repelling essential oils. You can also grow your own ant repellent in the vegetable garden. Place hot peppers in a blender with a bit of water to create a dense mash, which you can spread in problem areas.