GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post

27-05-2006, 10:34 PM posted to rec.gardens

wrote:
sawney beane wrote:
I live on the NC Piedmont. My yard gets tiny red ants with low mounds
about a foot in diameter. They swarm when disturbed. I understand it
takes an expert to see the difference between native fire ants and those
from Brazil.

I understand a 4% mixture of borax in sugar will kill fire ants if the
syrup is thin enough for them to suck. When I put some in a lid on the
mound, I discovered big red ants, that probably weigh ten times more
than the little ones, peacefully among the fire ants on their mound.

I thought fire ants didn't tolerate other ants. Was I wrong?

That is great that you're using borax. I recently started working for
a company that has a lot of experience in solving building problems
with the least toxic method. It was an eye opener to me how many of
the commonly used products contaminate our air.

I work on the Dear Sammi SaferBuilder column, so I get to learn about
all sorts of non toxic solutions. Borax is one of their top suggestions
for ants.

Another thing that they've suggested with ants is boiling water. Boil
a huge pot of boiling water. With fire ants, this is a two person job.
The reason is that when you start to pour the boiling water over the
nest, they sometimes run towards you and try to bite.

One person pours the boiling water over the nest, the second person
stands nearby with a hose and hoses the ants off of the first person.

If there are multiple queens, you may have to do this for a few days in
a row.

Gazelle

You do know that this kills the grass and it doesn't grow back for *months*?

When I lived in central Texas, I had the best luck with fire ants using
a product called "Logic" (active ingredient is fenoxycarb). I think
it's a synthetic juvenile hormone, or maybe it sterilizes the queen.
One little jar treated my whole 3/4 acre yard for 6 to 8 months, until
more ants moved in from my neighbors' yards. It is slow-acting, so if
there are any mounds in high-traffic areas near your house, you'll want
to use boiling water or Orthene 75S or diazinon (etc.) on those -- but
it's best to just wait and let the Logic work.

Best regards,
Bob