Has anyone ever had trouble with carpenter ants in the potting mix? I hope
not. We are repairing dry & moisture rot on the house and there are ant
nests everywhere there is rot. That's being taken care of, but the thing is,
the wood I'm removing looks just like my bark mix! Add water and it would be
ant heaven! I don't know if they have a taste for orchid roots, but one more
reason for keeping them inside.

--
Diane

actually carpenter ants do not damage wood they clean out old termite damage
and rot damage

carpenter ants are actually hunters, they hunt crickets and other ant
species

you will find in their frass (thats the stuff they throw out of their nests
that look like sawdust, thus the name "carpenter" ant) multiple bug parts

here is a link if you would like to know more
http://www.uky.edu/Agriculture/Entom...ruct/ef603.htm

jim

"Diane Mancino" wrote in message
et...
Has anyone ever had trouble with carpenter ants in the potting mix? I hope
not. We are repairing dry & moisture rot on the house and there are ant
nests everywhere there is rot. That's being taken care of, but the thing
is,
the wood I'm removing looks just like my bark mix! Add water and it would
be
ant heaven! I don't know if they have a taste for orchid roots, but one
more
reason for keeping them inside.

--
Diane

Thanks Jim, I think this was one of the websites I read after we discovered
the ants. Picture us out side ripping out the house siding and assaulting
with a shop vac web we came to a nest. The wall tunnels were amazing. The
tip for this garden group- watch for water damage, or else.

"Jim S" wrote in message
om...
actually carpenter ants do not damage wood they clean out old termite
damage
and rot damage

carpenter ants are actually hunters, they hunt crickets and other ant
species

you will find in their frass (thats the stuff they throw out of their
nests
that look like sawdust, thus the name "carpenter" ant) multiple bug parts

here is a link if you would like to know more
http://www.uky.edu/Agriculture/Entom...ruct/ef603.htm

jim

"Diane Mancino" wrote in message
et...
Has anyone ever had trouble with carpenter ants in the potting mix? I
hope
not. We are repairing dry & moisture rot on the house and there are ant
nests everywhere there is rot. That's being taken care of, but the thing
is,
the wood I'm removing looks just like my bark mix! Add water and it
would
be
ant heaven! I don't know if they have a taste for orchid roots, but one
more
reason for keeping them inside.

--
Diane

actually carpenter ants do not damage wood they clean out old termite
damage
and rot damage


This is not the info at the link you posted
http://www.uky.edu/Agriculture/Entom...ruct/ef603.htm

"Besides being objectionable by their presence, carpenter ants damage wood by
hollowing it out for nesting. They excavate galleries in wood which have a
smooth, sandpapered appearance. Wood which has been damaged by carpenter ants
contains no mud-like material, as is the case with termites. Shredded fragments
of wood, similar in appearance to coarse sawdust, are ejected from the
galleries through preexisting cracks or slits made by the ants. "

"Martin" wrote in message
...
actually carpenter ants do not damage wood they clean out old termite
damage
and rot damage


This is not the info at the link you posted
http://www.uky.edu/Agriculture/Entom...ruct/ef603.htm

"Besides being objectionable by their presence, carpenter ants damage wood
by
hollowing it out for nesting. They excavate galleries in wood which have a
smooth, sandpapered appearance. Wood which has been damaged by carpenter
ants
contains no mud-like material, as is the case with termites. Shredded
fragments
of wood, similar in appearance to coarse sawdust, are ejected from the
galleries through preexisting cracks or slits made by the ants. "


"They excavate galleries in wood "

this is what termite nests are called, "Galleries"

Jim

On 20 Jun 2003 02:43:17 GMT, on (Martin) wrote:

actually carpenter ants do not damage wood they clean out old termite
damage
and rot damage


This is not the info at the link you posted
http://www.uky.edu/Agriculture/Entom...ruct/ef603.htm

"Besides being objectionable by their presence, carpenter ants damage wood by
hollowing it out for nesting. They excavate galleries in wood which have a
smooth, sandpapered appearance. Wood which has been damaged by carpenter ants
contains no mud-like material, as is the case with termites. Shredded fragments
of wood, similar in appearance to coarse sawdust, are ejected from the
galleries through preexisting cracks or slits made by the ants. "

This is the experience we have had with them. They got into a
hollow closet door and you would wake at 3 to the sound of
crunch- munch. The sawdust on the floor was testimony to the
industry of the night. Once present they are as hard as termites
to be rid of. It takes the same kind of highly toxic spraying to
kill them.

Good Luck.
SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php

Susan,

Not that it would have worked in your case but we have killed them off with
20 Mule Team Borax.

Just take a misting bottle and mist water on the ants outside the nest,
assumeing you see a dozen or so of them, then sprinkle on some Borax. When
they lick it off each other in the nest and ingest it there is a reaction
that causes gas which they can't pass and their digestive system explodes,
or so I've heard.

It does work. It's much less toxic than many poisons.

Bob

"Susan Erickson" wrote in message
news
On 20 Jun 2003 02:43:17 GMT, on (Martin) wrote:

actually carpenter ants do not damage wood they clean out old termite
damage
and rot damage


This is not the info at the link you posted
http://www.uky.edu/Agriculture/Entom...ruct/ef603.htm

"Besides being objectionable by their presence, carpenter ants damage
wood by
hollowing it out for nesting. They excavate galleries in wood which have
a
smooth, sandpapered appearance. Wood which has been damaged by carpenter
ants
contains no mud-like material, as is the case with termites. Shredded
fragments
of wood, similar in appearance to coarse sawdust, are ejected from the
galleries through preexisting cracks or slits made by the ants. "

This is the experience we have had with them. They got into a
hollow closet door and you would wake at 3 to the sound of
crunch- munch. The sawdust on the floor was testimony to the
industry of the night. Once present they are as hard as termites
to be rid of. It takes the same kind of highly toxic spraying to
kill them.

Good Luck.
SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php

On Fri, 20 Jun 2003 16:04:03 GMT, "Bob Walsh"
wrote:

Susan,

Not that it would have worked in your case but we have killed them off with
20 Mule Team Borax.

Just take a misting bottle and mist water on the ants outside the nest,
assumeing you see a dozen or so of them, then sprinkle on some Borax. When
they lick it off each other in the nest and ingest it there is a reaction
that causes gas which they can't pass and their digestive system explodes,
or so I've heard.

It does work. It's much less toxic than many poisons.

Bob

Another great one to put in the bank. I no longer live in the
same area. But one never knows when this type of information
will be necessary.
SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php

Sue, you mentioned another solution, Move! I 'm glad I moved away from
fireants and termites, only the hardy live up here.

Diane
"Susan Erickson" wrote in message
news
On Fri, 20 Jun 2003 16:04:03 GMT, "Bob Walsh"
wrote:

Susan,

Not that it would have worked in your case but we have killed them off
with
20 Mule Team Borax.

Just take a misting bottle and mist water on the ants outside the nest,
assumeing you see a dozen or so of them, then sprinkle on some Borax.
When
they lick it off each other in the nest and ingest it there is a reaction
that causes gas which they can't pass and their digestive system
explodes,
or so I've heard.

It does work. It's much less toxic than many poisons.

Bob

Another great one to put in the bank. I no longer live in the
same area. But one never knows when this type of information
will be necessary.
SuE
http://orchids.legolas.org/gallery/albums.php