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angelinagardens

food-safe ant solutions?

angelinagardens
13 years ago

I noticed this morning that a large quantity of big red and black ants seem to have taken over what was going to be my eggplant and pepper bed. I don't know that these are the biting kind of ants (I don't know a lot about ants, honestly), but I have had many unfortunate encounters with biting ants, and I am not anxious to repeat the experience. I can't spray that bed with the stuff I would usually use, since I am growing food in there. Any suggestions? Other than abandoning the bed to the ants. :)

Angel

Comments (5)

  • xray
    13 years ago

    I've twice had black ants try to set up shop in my garage. Talcum powder at their point of entry convinced them to relocate. I can't speak for outdoor effectiveness.

    xRay

  • windwhipped
    13 years ago

    When I find ants inside the house I sprinkle some peppermint oil wherever I see them coming in. Ants apparently don't like peppermint! I'm not sure how this would translate to your outside bed - maybe you could dilute it and spray the ground around your plants, or sprinkle it on paper strips and lay them around the bed. Anyway, it is the only non-toxic ant repellant I know so I thought I'd mention it. Good luck.

  • jeremywildcat
    13 years ago

    Interesting - I seem to have an ant problem starting too, though one place I noticed it in particular was in my mint plants! From what I've read, they often eat the dew left by aphids, which is what actually does the damage. I also have some holes in my lettuce and spinach in which I suspect the same thing. I sprayed some kind of bug spray (pyrethin I think) which said is safe to use up to the day of harvest for vegetables. We'll see if it works.

  • Skybird - z5, Denver, Colorado
    13 years ago

    Short reply from NW Iowa with a poor connection!

    Every spring I have a bad problem with tiny ants, and last year I decided to try something I read about online somewhere. I poured ammonia, straight out of the bottle, directly into the openings of the nests. A few weeks ago, when they started to reappear this year, I did it again, and it seems to be working! There were fewer of them this year than last, and hopefully even fewer still around next year. Last year one of the worst nests was directly under one of the perennials and I kind of wondered what it would do to the plant, but the plant was completely unaffected, even tho I poured straight ammonia (a lot of it!) right at the base of the plant! I don't know if there are some plants it might hurt, so if you try it, do a "test plant" first. I've also used it on a couple nests in the lawn, and the grass was unaffected.

    Before trying the ammonia I had been using "ant & roach" aerosol spray for 3 years---with virtually no effect! I tried the ammonia in desperation---and I'm glad I did! Before I left home a week ago, I "re-treated" the few nests that were coming back after this year's first "treatment," and most of them seemed to be gone---for the rest of this year at least---by the time I left. I think it's at least worth a try in a small area to see if it works on "your kind" of ants.

    Good luck,
    Skybird

  • xaroline
    13 years ago

    I use cornmeal or wheat granules and it works some.
    I like the ammonia idea as ammonia is a good plant food.