How do you deal with ants?

https://www.lowes.com/pd/TERRO-6-Count-Ant-Bait-Station-6-Pack/5001954631?cm_mmc=shp--c--prd--lwn--ggl--SS_LWN_000_Priority_Items--5001954631--local--0-_-0&gclid=CjwKCAjwlJimBhAsEiwA1hrp5g0hd7V4gCJpOVzMOO99L6h0DEPRPrLrMV0O72lfmowjgCVp4EfYNxoCZpkQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

I use these bad boys, probably the same liquid your talking about , the seem to work great.

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Beat me to it moefugger, for a bad ant infestation fipronil is hard to beat :+1:

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True Rogue however small targeted amounts not around the general grow area should sort them
out. Id only suggest it to get a bad infestation under control then non chemical methods to discourage them.

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Borax / Confectioners sugar
1:1
small bottle caps filled with mix.
Dry day
all ants dead.
Pick up bottle caps the next day, toss in trash.
You are welcome :wink:
.02

ps, the amount of borax they bring back to the nest will not cause any harm to anything, ever. they just grab a kernel, thinking it’s sugar, and feed it to the queen.

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I’ve never seen ants use just the plant for food. That is strange. Usually they are on the plants for aphids and their honeydew.
I have all kinds of insects where I grow outdoors that would love to chew on my plants.
What I have started doing the last few seasons is using silica. Power Si liquid that I mix in water for a soil drench. It strengthens the cell walls of the plant and makes it almost impossible to chew on.
I still have some minor chew holes in the leaves but that’s it. This stuff works.
Another bonus, stronger stalk and branches to hold up heavy buds in the wind.
If you start immediately with silica in every watering you should see results in about a week.
No need for poison, make the plant undesirable to chew on.

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In past grows I used aloe in my teas for silica, only did it on the most recent veg tea almost 3 weeks ago for this grow, very interesting though cuz I didn’t have any problems before

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Potassium silicate is OK too. It’s much cheaper but watch your ph.

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I use the Terro ant baits in the house, but this is how to DIY them to make enough for a whole greenhouse. Super cheap, you just need a box of laundry borax, some sugar and water, and a bunch of empty water bottles from the recycling:

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all permitted licenses for chemicals take all that into consideration… Todays stuff isnt like chlordane…read n follow labels always because its the law… strange fact - if anyone has used or is using frontline on pets look at label… it has fipronil at like 9% I believe it is… then we are supposed to put it between out pets shoulders (dermal exposure) … Termidors strongest rate you can mix it by law under certain applications is .06% … Label says wear PPE and no pets or ppl in it till dry… no ingestion , no dermal exposure… yada yada… Very odd considering the labels and purpose between the 2… Anyway , I know theres a lot of concern with people using chemicals for pests. I cant express the importance for reading labels and doing research before any applications… Its the misuse of products that have caused problems for the most… Not using these types of product will usually allow the populations to build more… Once pheromone trails are in wall voids for instance , they will be there for a long time… following seasons the new generations may find those old trails and go right back to them… anyone with any probs in past can probably attest to them always coming from same areas once they get indoors… wall voids and interior areas of structure thats hard to clean and sanitize will hold those old trails for next gens… tempos good product for dust… its strictly crack n crevice type thing though… dust the cracks they go in… the difference between using something like tempo and a non repellent product is that repellent products will move them into new areas … they will stay outta dodge so to speak and make new paths… using liquid repellents outdoors can potentially push ants indoors on structure… especially a broadcast… you cant broadcast termiticides like that though so read label… edges of sidewalks ,edges of timbers , edging , treebase. foundation lines… 1 foot up n 1 foot out on foundation… you can get window casings , door casings… works great on wasp , crickets… other usual pest… but this type of product will help knock the population down a lot more than anything else… it wont just fix your problem like a bandaid… itll reduce population rather quickly… omg ants are EVERYWHERE… Outdoor applications last about 45 days in normal conditions… sun breaks down crystals more than average rainfall will “wash” it out… shaded areas like porches and non sunny areas of structure may hold a little longer residual…as far as the amount of product something may ingest after an ant has walked in it isnt much at all… its just a few crystals on its body it picked up… research - very important

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Ant bait by Amdro

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Actually no, to ‘clear this.all up’ it WAS clear when I got it, but its a couple years old and still does the trick, darkened with age…
I think I spent like $6 on this bottle and only use drops the size of qtip heads and its killed every ant problem I’ve ever had.

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May I tell you something funny? I was actually talking about the words I typed. I was concerned my meaning might be unclear. You were talking about the actual fluid! HA!

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I’d try Tangle Trap, and apply it to the stalks, up the first branches.
Stops my hummingbird feeders from being over run.

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Terro liquid bait stations around the house, and Sevin granules all over the yard.

Terro kills the colonies in around the house, Sevin really knocks down the yard population. Had a bunch of ants this year in the new house.

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As I mentioned earlier in this thread, I have a 50 gal planter and this spring it had THOUSANDS of ants… The loose soil and stones in the bottom made it ideal for a major colony. They were carrying eggs by the hundreds and I thought the pot was unusable. I tore 3 small 2x2 pieces of thin cardboard, and placed 3 small drops on each piece and placed it in the planter. In two days there was not an ant to be seen.
All gone. That stuff works, I put the same small pieces in the kitchen.
For the yard I sprinkle diatomaceous earth on the ant hills, they disappear there too.

Horticulture glue around the base so they can’t make their way up the plant works very well.

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That’s the stuff you can get at the hardware store that comes with the sprayer you spray around the foundation base for ants?

Put a ribbon coat of Tanglefoot on the stem…ants will not cross.

Boric acid or terro if you want them dead. Both of those use a minute amount of product to wipe out a colony. The EPA rates boric acid as minimal risk. It saved my strawberry patch this year…just sprinkled it on some honey and ant problem was solved. The main thing is not to be heavy handed. And neither work if they don’t eat it :slight_smile: Tanglefoot works on all of them!

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Borax and sugar are mentioned above and we have used it for years, New this year 4 us is Baking Soda and Sugar. Same idea, they take it back the nest and it kills em…

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@AzSeaindooin420

What kind of foaming dish soap did you use? I’ve used Dawn Platinum Powerwash on the tiny ants that invade my kitchen and it kills them plus seems to keep them away for awhile.

I spray it on, follow their trail and cover it and their point of entry with the foam. I don’t wipe it off… just spray and walk away… the foam will go away and the wetness will dry, and then? No more ants for awhile.

Don’t know if it will work around your plants, but I know it worked on my kitchen counter.

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