GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post - roots sticking out of drainage holes + ant problem

01-05-2004, 04:14 AM

In article ,
says...
I suggest you leave well alone till long after fruiting is finished. They
probably flowered so well because they were crowded. Given totally ideal
conditions many plants will make masses of growth and few flowers. The ants
will not be a problem.

Ants can definatly be a problem in pots. It depends on what they're
doing - they might just be setting up an aphid farm, which can be kept
under control by an occasional hosing with water. If that's all they're
doing then it's no big deal. Ants living in the pot are another thing.
If the ants are present in large numbers, they will remove the soil
from the pot to create tunnels, and they will chew through finer roots.
Water will quickly drain through with very little being taken up by the
plant. I have had more than a few plants killed by ant infestations.
Plants in the ground are more easily able to tolerate ants around the
roots, but not plants in containers.

BP