Where in La are you? I was just out in the yard and still have standing water after all the rain we had here in Shreveport.
I'm going to poison as the ants start showing mounds..
gotta start early or they will take over.

I put boards (scrap lumber) up as borders on my garden runs. I got some from a friend in construction and just enlarged my runs from 3X20 to 4.5 X28.. Then tilled the area inside. It raises up some over the regular yard level but doesn't wash much.. I don;t add soil to the garden itself, only compost. I just got through adding 4 mounded wheelbarrows of compost to each run. 2 are planted with seeds but I'm holding the other 2 for my peppers and tomatoes which aren't quite ready for transplanting yet.

It isn't too late to put out peppers, they just may not bare much fruit this year but all I did was put a box over my plants I had during the few frost we had and I am enjoying the fruits now. Try hot soapy water, it will kill all it touches as it removes their waxy coating.

The people who grow my organic vegetables told me last week that they are using mint tea to discourage ants. The ants, apparently, have a great dislike for the mint oils.

Haven't tried it yet, but it's worth a try.

The natural way to kill Fire Ants is "Grits" It's cheap and it works well. The Ants take the "Grits" down to the Queen, where they all eat it and since they can't digest it they die.It might take a couple of days. But you don't have to worry about poisons being eaten by pets or worse You. Please give this a try it really does work, I live in Louisiana also in Cajun Country. You should see results in a couple of days, if you scratch the mound and see no ants , you'll know it worked... Good Luck!

I found a large colony of fire ants in my tomato bed. I thought at first it was localized then realized it follows the soaker hose I have lying in the bed. I'm trying the mint tea solution. I used 4 or 5 stalks of mint, chopped it an boiled it. I'll see if the ants even care.

I just don't want to put poison in my vegetable area although by te time the plants grow enough to bear, the poison may be gone. Not sure how long it really lasts.. I'll put some poison out in the next day or 2 if the mint doesn;t do anything.

Apparently, "grits killing fire ants" is just a myth. See the link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Grits, Ants and Fire Ants: The Truth!

The fire ants may have moved a little to avoid the mint tea stuff, but have a big mound a little further down the bed. So I'm going to put out a little poison today. Hopefully it will all break down by the time the tomato plants produce.

Pjames, there's a fireant control that's safe for the veggie garden. I have some in the shed. I'll check the name in the morning.

It's made by Green Light. I bought it locally.

Here is a link that might be useful: Organic Fireant Control

should grits be sprinkled on ant mounds dry,and then sprink ed with water?

to kill fire ants put liquid dishwater soap (the cheapest works) in a 2 liter soda bottle, then fill with water. The amount of soap is just enough for a good soapy mix. Pour enough to saturate the mound. Really large mounds might require a second application because the queen might be down deep. While the mix does kill worker ants, ultimately it's the queen who has to die so the rest leave. Put it in a sprayer to spray for aphids, and other such critters.