Ants!?

[Noonin NorCal]

I found a shit ton of ants inside one of my fabric containers today.
Was wondering how i should go about getting rid of them?
They are underneath my mulch which is a couple inches of straw...

I have Diatamacious Earth, doesn't it stop working once wet? I have some neem seed meal that is already in my soil mix, could i sprinkle that like a top dress to kill them?

I have a ton of perlite left over, was thinking of breaking it down and sprinkling it... Would that maybe cut them and kill them? I have cinnamon too, but was wondering how i should apply it? Take all the straw off first or?

I also have Terro ant stakes.

Other then that the plant looks healthy knock on wood. None of the ants are climbing up the stalk..... Thanks!!!

 

[RED 1]

I found a shit ton of ants inside one of my fabric containers today.
Was wondering how i should go about getting rid of them?
They are underneath my mulch which is a couple inches of straw...

I have Diatamacious Earth, doesn't it stop working once wet? I have some neem seed meal that is already in my soil mix, could i sprinkle that like a top dress to kill them?

I have a ton of perlite left over, was thinking of breaking it down and sprinkling it... Would that maybe cut them and kill them? I have cinnamon too, but was wondering how i should apply it? Take all the straw off first or?

I also have Terro ant stakes.

Other then that the plant looks healthy knock on wood. None of the ants are climbing up the stalk..... Thanks!!!

Use bait to find where they are nesting
50/50 white vinegar diluted in water, apparently kills them off when sprayed

 

[Lrus007]

mostly is 2 kinds of ants. one likes wood other likes sugar.
make a little pile of sugar and a little pile of sawdust/shavings.
see what pile they like. then get some boric acid from the RX.
mix in with what they like. so say they like sugar. mix 1/3 of the
boric acid to 2/3 sugar. put some little piles on there trails.
they will take it back to the nest and kill the queen.
good luck Lrus007

 

[40degsouth]

Hey Noonin,
what type of ant have you got?? Are they a predatory species that prey on insects detrimental to your plants and live in symbiosis with them or, are they a species that are doing, or supporting, some type of damage??
A small amount of ant dust around their hole will kill them off. A piece of mince with a sprinkling of ant dust will also work on the species l get here.
You can paint a small/thin amount of a petroleum based gel with a strong scent, or tiger balm, around the stalk to stop them going up and down the plant.
Cheers,
40

 

[calisun]

I've seen ants take down a 10ft plant once and heard of a couple others. Double check anywhere else the plant may be touching ground like a branch touching a stake that goes in the ground. The one I saw the ants found or made a hole in a stem and went inside the plant and killed it. The plant didn't really show any signs of harm just kind of fell over into the trellising one day.
Hard to say what is best to kill them. Terro works great for my house ants but didn't attract the garden ants. DE didn't really work for me. neither did a bunch of different borax mixes I made. One or both of those may work for your ants pending the species of ant you have I guess.
What did work for me. paper around the trunk or where ever they are getting on the plant with tanglefoot on the paper. I also poured some diluted citrus limonene oil where I saw the ants coming out of the soil. You can get a little bottle from a health food store to try. If you got multiple colonies you can get a gallon online sold as a restaurant oil drain degreaser for a better price but it still a little spendy. I'd try what you got first.
Oh I think cinnamon is harmful to earthworms

 

[Noonin NorCal]

Im not sure what kind of ants they are, but they fucking smell/stink lol

 

[LizardMan]

Well i geuss ill be more dedicated to fucking up the ants i have.... They have allready entered the stalk, and i dont like the sounds of my plant just one day falling over!!

Ill update with everything ive used and what worked as the season continues.

 

[Chunkypigs]

tablespoon of borax next to the pot and they will be dead in 2 days.

 

[Noonin NorCal]

tablespoon of borax next to the pot and they will be dead in 2 days.

But they are inside of my pot

 

[Chunkypigs]

They will smell it and take it to the nest killing the rest.

 

[aridbud]

Boric acid powder around the seams? Cinnamon works too.

 

[Sunshineinabag]

If I used a happy frog bag, laid perpendicular/flat along my porch and have corn in it that's showing small red ants ruining the leaves on corn so they gotta go.....I'd love to be able to line the plastic edge of the container with cinn powder lines.....I'm willing to give her a go

 

[aridbud]

If I used a happy frog bag, laid perpendicular/flat along my porch and have corn in it that's showing small red ants ruining the leaves on corn so they gotta go.....I'd love to be able to line the plastic edge of the container with cinn powder lines.....I'm willing to give her a go

With cinnamon, you'll see ants back up or turn away. Interesting to watch. Prefer non poisonous methods.

 

[Sunshineinabag]

Lol can't wait

 

[LizardMan]

Well the first round of testing has been weird to say the least....my main issue is the ants have climbed up and into my stalks!!

Cinnamon - it works with some efficiency, the ants will go pass or through it if determined, also rain washes it away quickly (deterrent doesn't stop the issue)

Diamatious Earth - kills the ants that walk through it but not very fast (slow kill but does t do anything to the colony)

Vinegar - sprayed on and the scent does shake them up (think it disrupts the scent trails) but doesn't kill any of then also washes away with rain

Neem oil - sprayed on its about as effective as cinnamon last longer due to oil properties

Duct tape sticky side out - great physical barrier ants don't walk across it due to them getting stuck, last a fair while in the weather before replacing but doesn't rid the ants of the area

Borax and sugar solution seems to be the only thing that's putting a dent in the population but rain also messes with solution could add to sawdust for wood loving ants....

Small test but some info and trying to keep away from store bought pesticide since these ants are IN my plant and on it!!!!


Best of luck on the war against bugs fellow growers!!

 

[Guest]

Funny I just found some setting up home in one of my veg plants while I was transplanting. I'm in coco btw.
So I just soaked the rootball in a bucket of hot water. And proceeded with the transplant. Ants gone.
And yes they will fuck you up if you leave them be.