Topic: Red ants

[reddyreddy]

If I have one phobia it is ants and worse than that my new allotment appears to be infested with red ants. Any tips on getting rid of the buggers, something that will be ok bearing in mind I plan to sow veg in this ground! Thank you!!  :)

[thifasmom]

try leaving closed containers with a few small holes in the sides at the soil level with a mixture of borax and sugar they will take it back to the nest and ta da death to them all.

[tonybloke]

just dig them up, or drown the nest! if digging, spread the nest on the surface, and stand back as the birds love an ants nest! ;)

[redimp]

I agree with Tony.  I have dug them up and the robins love.them - especially the grubs.  It is also funny to watch them dance around because the reds have a painful bite.  Other than that, I don't have much of a personal problem with them.

[JIS]

I have had lots of problems with red ants, I think you will find they are considerably harder than the black kind to get rid of.

They don't like being disturbed, and will move their nest if you annoy them and they don't actually bite, they spit acid at you which burns.

nasty little things.  :'(

[OllieC]

The ones on my plot don't spit, they sting!

[tonybloke]

ants don't physically have a sting! wasps and bees do, though ;)

[OllieC]

These ones have a sting, I promise!

[Robert_Brenchley]

A lot of ants do sting, and I'm pretty sure Myrmica, the red ant, is one that does. I can't verify that from anything on my bookshelf unfortunately. Some ants, like the common wood ant, have adapted to spray the poison, which in the case of ants is largely formic acid, rather than injecting it. So wood ants will spray acid in your face, and if you annoy them too much they'll bite, and spray the wound.

[reddyreddy]

Is the borax and sugar thing ok to use near my veg crops as I assume the ants will eat it and die in the ground therefore leaving borax in the soil I plan to plant in?

[thifasmom]

Is the borax and sugar thing ok to use near my veg crops as I assume the ants will eat it and die in the ground therefore leaving borax in the soil I plan to plant in?

yes i believe so, i just found this quote:

Add anything suggested by the soil test. If your soil is extremely sandy, add some clay, and vice versa. Sprinkle some bone or blood meal. Dig in some seaweed sprinkled with a little (very little) wood ash, lime, and borax.

from here:
http://www.supak.com/organic_gardening/healthy_soil.htm

also found this so its a question of how much would the ants carry underground, http://organic.lovetoknow.com/Borax_Amounts_for_Organic_Gardening i personally don't think it is that much. when i use this method in the past its always about one large tablespoon with two level tablespoons of sugar, and plants seem to grow fine. i have used it for both ants and cockroaches in the west indies.

[Robert_Brenchley]

I thik very little borax ends up in the soil, and as it's very soluble, it'll wash out fairly quickly.