ants
Hello all Much as I admire their amazing organizational talents, ants are becoming more than serious competitors to us humans - at least they are in our greenhouse and fruit garden. Is the planet perhaps one huge ant-nest ? In the greenhouse they farm those little scabby things on an indoor grapevine (had to rub them off between thumb and finger) and greenfly on my (now crippled) tomato seedlings. I`ve watched them doing it. On apple trees I've watched the little perishers collecting aphids on the outermost tips of the branches. Is there anything I can do (apart from the boiling oil) ? Is there some odour they can't stand ? Do they have no natural enemies - apart from me - and ant-eaters which are a bit rare round here ? Thanks for any non-toxic suggestions. from Ray |
ants
In article ,
Raymond RUSSELL wrote: Much as I admire their amazing organizational talents, ants are becoming more than serious competitors to us humans - at least they are in our greenhouse and fruit garden. Is the planet perhaps one huge ant-nest ? Yes. In the greenhouse they farm those little scabby things on an indoor grapevine (had to rub them off between thumb and finger) and greenfly on my (now crippled) tomato seedlings. I`ve watched them doing it. On apple trees I've watched the little perishers collecting aphids on the outermost tips of the branches. No, they don't farm them - they follow them. Ignore the ants as an irrelevance - if the scale insects and aphids are there, the ants will follow; and conversely. I use them as a mealybug indicator in my conservatory :-) Is there anything I can do (apart from the boiling oil) ? Is there some odour they can't stand ? Do they have no natural enemies - apart from me - and ant-eaters which are a bit rare round here ? Lots, but they have been around for quite a long time. They do very little harm (and quite a lot of good) in the garden, and are best ignored. Use a borax-based poison for nests that start raiding the kitchen, digging up the patio or otherwise making an excessive nuisance of themselves, and otherwise live with them. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
ants
In article , Raymond RUSSELL
writes Hello all Much as I admire their amazing organizational talents, ants are becoming more than serious competitors to us humans - at least they are in our greenhouse and fruit garden. Is the planet perhaps one huge ant-nest ? You're too dry. Come and live in wet yorkshire - we have *no* problem with ants. I don't think we even have ants. -- Kay Easton Edward's earthworm page: http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm |
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ants
"Kay Easton" wrote in message ... In article , Raymond RUSSELL writes Hello all Much as I admire their amazing organizational talents, ants are becoming more than serious competitors to us humans - at least they are in our greenhouse and fruit garden. Is the planet perhaps one huge ant-nest ? You're too dry. Come and live in wet yorkshire - we have *no* problem with ants. I don't think we even have ants. Agreed. I used to fight an annual fight with ants in the wrong places in Surrey, and have not seen a solitary one since we moved to Wensleydale fifteen years ago. Our problem is midges. But they harm the gardener, not the garden Franz |
ants
On 3 May 2004 19:04:41 GMT, Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article , Raymond RUSSELL wrote: Much as I admire their amazing organizational talents, ants are becoming more than serious competitors to us humans - at least they are in our greenhouse and fruit garden. Is the planet perhaps one huge ant-nest ? Yes. In the greenhouse they farm those little scabby things on an indoor grapevine (had to rub them off between thumb and finger) and greenfly on my (now crippled) tomato seedlings. I`ve watched them doing it. On apple trees I've watched the little perishers collecting aphids on the outermost tips of the branches. No, they don't farm them - they follow them. Ignore the ants as an irrelevance - if the scale insects and aphids are there, the ants will follow; and conversely. I use them as a mealybug indicator in my conservatory :-) Is there anything I can do (apart from the boiling oil) ? Is there some odour they can't stand ? Do they have no natural enemies - apart from me - and ant-eaters which are a bit rare round here ? Lots, but they have been around for quite a long time. They do very little harm (and quite a lot of good) in the garden, and are best ignored. Use a borax-based poison for nests that start raiding the kitchen, digging up the patio or otherwise making an excessive nuisance of themselves, and otherwise live with them. Regards, Nick Maclaren. They do protect some aphids. I've seen (presumably) young pale aphids being nurtured in a few nests I've dug up in winter. They overwinter them in the nest and bring them out onto the young shoots in spring. The ants often drive off potential predators, so allowing the aphids to increase. So it's not exactly farming, more like shepherding. -- Tim C. |
ants
In article m, Tim Challenger "timothy(dot)challenger(at)apk(dot)at" writes: | | They do protect some aphids. I've seen (presumably) young pale aphids being | nurtured in a few nests I've dug up in winter. They overwinter them in the | nest and bring them out onto the young shoots in spring. The ants often | drive off potential predators, so allowing the aphids to increase. So it's | not exactly farming, more like shepherding. Are you sure that you weren't confusing dairy and beef cattle? Both may well occur, but your "often" is definitely wrong. At most, "sometimes". I have enquired in several contexts about this, and even entymologists are very uncertain about exactly what the ants are doing with the aphids in the UK[*], and in what proportion of cases. Unlike in the tropics, there is minimal evidence for much in the way of shepherding, let alone farming - proof of association (which, as you say, there is) is not even good evidence of causality. What there is no evidence for at all, and some evidence against, is that killing ants helps to reduce aphid infestations. This is pretty strong evidence that, if the protection actions occur, they are not very effective. [*] Except that the tabloids' usual innuendo is implausible. Regards, Nick Maclaren. |
ants
On 4 May 2004 08:16:58 GMT, Nick Maclaren wrote:
In article m, Tim Challenger "timothy(dot)challenger(at)apk(dot)at" writes: | | They do protect some aphids. I've seen (presumably) young pale aphids being | nurtured in a few nests I've dug up in winter. They overwinter them in the | nest and bring them out onto the young shoots in spring. The ants often | drive off potential predators, so allowing the aphids to increase. So it's | not exactly farming, more like shepherding. Are you sure that you weren't confusing dairy and beef cattle? :-) Both may well occur, but your "often" is definitely wrong. At most, "sometimes". Maybe I got lucky. They were in at least every third or fourth nest I dug into (normally accidentally) during the winter. A small sample admittedly. I have enquired in several contexts about this, and even entymologists are very uncertain about exactly what the ants are doing with the aphids in the UK[*], and in what proportion of cases. In my experience entymologists can't even agree on which pub to go to. Seriously though, I have spent a number of hours with a beer watching them on the plants and I've seen them moving aphids around in their jaws - especially the apple tree, for some reason. They tend to pick them up at the rear somehow or maybe by a leg - I can never quite see - and carry them some distance to a seemingly random spot. Unlike in the tropics, there is minimal evidence for much in the way of shepherding, let alone farming - proof of association (which, as you say, there is) is not even good evidence of causality. True. I understand the distinction. What there is no evidence for at all, and some evidence against, is that killing ants helps to reduce aphid infestations. This is pretty strong evidence that, if the protection actions occur, they are not very effective. That does seem to be the case. I'm hoping the blue tits nesting in the apricot tree will polish off a few aphids for me. Still they don't bother me much and don't seem to do any noticeable damage, the biggest nuisance is them in the lawn. [*] Except that the tabloids' usual innuendo is implausible. Yuck! ;-) -- Tim C. |
ants
On Tue, 4 May 2004 07:52:12 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote: "Kay Easton" wrote in message ... In article , Raymond RUSSELL writes Hello all Much as I admire their amazing organizational talents, ants are becoming more than serious competitors to us humans - at least they are in our greenhouse and fruit garden. Is the planet perhaps one huge ant-nest ? You're too dry. Come and live in wet yorkshire - we have *no* problem with ants. I don't think we even have ants. Agreed. I used to fight an annual fight with ants in the wrong places in Surrey, and have not seen a solitary one since we moved to Wensleydale fifteen years ago. That is what's known as a tactical withdrawal, rather than a victory :-) Our problem is midges. But they harm the gardener, not the garden let DET be your friend. :-) |
ants
"........You're too dry. Come and live in wet yorkshire - we have *no*
problem with ants. I don't think we even have ants........" Nice try but we are plagued with ants and ant hill throughout the lawns and grass and we have a rainfall of around 80 inches a year. -- David Hill Abacus nurseries www.abacus-nurseries.co.uk |
ants
In article , David Hill david@abacusn
urseries.freeserve.co.uk writes "........You're too dry. Come and live in wet yorkshire - we have *no* problem with ants. I don't think we even have ants........" Nice try but we are plagued with ants and ant hill throughout the lawns and grass and we have a rainfall of around 80 inches a year. I don't mind the ants except for the bloody great mounds in the lawn, these are big solid masses about a foot across -- David |
ants
On Tue, 4 May 2004 22:18:09 +0100, David Hill wrote:
"........You're too dry. Come and live in wet yorkshire - we have *no* problem with ants. I don't think we even have ants........" Nice try but we are plagued with ants and ant hill throughout the lawns and grass and we have a rainfall of around 80 inches a year. Ah, you must have a lawn of ant-grass (Aristida oligantha) or it's the bog-ant (Formica palus) ;-) -- Tim C. |
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