Ways to fight ants in the garden and vegetable garden
Cultivated plants have enough enemies, but especially among them are always busily hurrying, superbly organized, prey ants. They are distinguished by a huge variety of species, while being able to adapt to any climatic features of the region, so it is not unusual for them to settle in our summer cottages - in vegetable gardens, in gardens and greenhouses.
How to protect our lands from their attack and completely get rid of annoying garden ants? This is what our material will be devoted to.
Content
Why are ants in the country harmful, and are there any benefits from them?
They can destroy harmful insects, their larvae and even caterpillars, bringing great benefits to our garden.But this is where it actually ends.
Why are garden ants so unwelcome guests in our summer cottages?
Firstly, they carry aphids to our summer cottages: vegetables (cucumbers), shrubs (currants and gooseberries) and fruit trees... They do this because they feed on its carbohydrate secretions - sweet honeydew.
Important! Until you completely remove the ants, it will be difficult to defeat the aphids.
Secondly, during construction their underground nests (anthills) ants, as a rule, do not disdain gnaw and spoil young plant roots (especially recently planted seedlings). In addition, there are varieties of them that are happy to feed on plant sap. The latter, because of this, become weak and painful (they can easily pick up various fungal diseases and infections).
It so happens that you sowed the seeds, but did not wait for the seedlings, or there were not enough of them. It is possible that our small pests have worked here again, which simply dragged some of the seeds to their nests, more precisely, made stocks.
Another trouble that can happen with young seedlings is that if small garden bandits like a place near a recently sprouted seed, they will dig their holes in the garden bed and, as it were, "accidentally" cover your crops with earth, from which they will have to make their way to the sun again.
Ants are very fond of everything sweet, so they are happy feast on your fallen fruits and berrieshanging close to the ground, such as strawberries.
It is not uncommon to see these malignant boogers on blossoming peonies, attracted by the sweet juice secreted by the flower.
Thirdly, in the process of their vital activity ants produce acid, which gradually accumulates in the soil next to the anthill, thereby increasing soil acidity, which is contraindicated in some plants.
On a note! Perhaps there is no pleasure in a summer picnic at the dacha, when hordes of ants climb from all cracks.
General rules for getting rid of ants from the garden
A few tips to improve the effectiveness of the fight against garden ants at their summer cottage:
- Determining that an anthill is alive is quite simple if there are small stones near its entrance, which are carried out in the process of creating moves. This means that life is in full swing there.
- It is best to catch and destroy insect pests in daytimewhen they have, so to speak, a working day, and the entrance to their the nest is open.
- Depending on whether where is located anthill, apply appropriate means and methods of pest control. For example, if this is a garden bed or tree trunk circle, then watering it (nest) with kerosene is not a very good idea. If this is a flower garden and you don't want the flowers to die, use safer means. It's another matter if you want to drive them away from some empty place in the garden, where, for example, you planned to install a brazier or a bench.
- It is not at all necessary to destroy all ants in your area. (they have a useful function, which was mentioned a little earlier), it is enough to get rid of anthills only in those places where they harm your garden, namely: in the beds, on trees and shrubs, as well as in your picnic area, where you cook barbecue and relax on a lounger.
Advice! If you want the aqueous solution to reach the maximum depth of the anthill (after all, this is the only way you can corrode the entire colony, including the female queen), it (the anthill) needs to be dug up a little with a shovel.
Ant chemicals
The most radical and most effective way is, of course, the use of special chemicals from ants (insecticides).
By the way! There are specific and generic insecticides that, in addition to the ants themselves, will also help you get rid of bear, aphids, Colorado potato beetle and many other pests.
Popular chemicals for killing ants:
- Anti-ant;
- Muratsid;
- Ant;
- Ant-eater;
- Medvetox;
- Thunder 2;
- Raptor;
- Inta-Vir.
Clarifying detail: in the composition of such products as Muravyin and Thunder 2, the main active ingredient is diazinon, which is completely safe and harmless to soil and beneficial insects. However, even such drugs have a waiting period, which you must definitely familiarize yourself with by reading the instructions in detail.
Advice! And yet, insecticides should be used only in extreme cases, for example, if more environmentally friendly methods and folk remedies against ants have not worked, or you want to achieve the desired result in a fairly short time.
Although, if it comes to, for exampleflower garden, not vegetable bedsthen why not use it.
Video: how to get rid of ants in the garden
By the way! There are also special ant repeller devices.
Folk remedies and ways to combat ants in the garden and vegetable garden
In addition to special chemicals, there are also similar "chemical" folk ways to get rid of a summer cottage from garden ants.
Gasoline, kerosene
To get out these petty scoundrels, pour kerosene or gasoline on the anthill (just don't try to set it on fire). After 3 days, the remains of the surviving insects will leave in an unknown direction and are unlikely to return. The method is perfect if harmful insects have curled near your garden house, in its foundation.
Acetic and citric acid
Even though ants secrete acid themselves, they cannot tolerate any other acid present. Therefore, if the anthills are regularly watered with dilute acetic or citric acid, then pests will soon leave this place.
By the way! It is also allowed to use technical acids: hydrochloric and sulfuric. However, they need to be thinned more strongly!
Boric acid
The easiest way to get rid of ants for good is to use boric acid.
Sweet garden pest bait with boric acid can be made as follows by taking these ingredients:
- 2 tbsp. spoons of warm water;
- 1/3 teaspoon of boric acid;
- 1 tbsp. a spoonful of granulated sugar;
- 1 tsp honey or jam (optional).
Mix everything well and pour into a wide container (for example, a saucer). Place it near the anthill. And after a couple of days, make a new solution again.
The essence of this method of dealing with garden ants is that they do not die immediately, but only after 4-5 days, while managing to drag the poisoned bait to their nest, thereby poisoning everyone in it - the larvae and even the uterus. Therefore, it is very important not to overdo it with concentration, otherwise the effect will be instantaneous and will not affect the anthill itself.
Attention! The following video presents a slightly different, but no less effective way to use boric acid.
Yeast
Yeast is another effective remedy that will help you get rid of ants in your garden forever. The effect of their use is similar to boric acid, that is, it is not instantaneous, but gradually causing maximum damage. The bottom line is that the yeast will begin to ferment and thereby destroy all ant stocks in the nest.
The yeast pest bait is made from the following ingredients (in equal proportions):
- 50 grams of fresh yeast;
- 50 grams of granulated sugar;
- 50 ml warm water.
Again, mix everything thoroughly and pour into a wide container (for example, everything in the same saucer). Place it near the anthill. And after a couple of days, make a new solution again.
Ammonia (ammonia)
An excellent means of killing ants in the garden is the use of ammonia.
The working solution is prepared as follows: 50 ml of 10% ammonia is dissolved in 1 liter of water, and then the anthill is watered.
Note! The main advantage of using ammonia in the fight against garden ants is the fact that it is a safe nitrogen fertilizer for your garden and vegetable garden.
Video: ammonia is a super remedy in the fight against ants
There is also a slightly different method for removing ants with the help of ammonia, which is very convenient to use in a greenhouse, although it is suitable for open ground beds.
Here's what you need to do: cover the anthill with a cloth, after sprinkling ammonia on it (it's better to do everything quickly). Then turn over and cover with something that does not allow air to pass through, for example, burlap or cellophane (some kind of film). Additionally, cover with boards or some other heavy object so that it occupies the entire area of the rag. Wait 2-3 days.
Video: how to get rid of ants in a greenhouse using ammonia
Baking soda
Ants from the summer cottage can be driven away with baking soda, sprinkling it on their homes. Of course, they will not go away right away, but gradually they will become less and less. True, most likely, they will simply move to another place, for example, to their neighbors or a little further.
Video: food water is the best and easiest way to fight ants
Mustard
Ants love to settle in greenhouses, especially where they are cucumber beds where aphids live... To safely drive them out of the area, you can try using mustard powder by sprinkling the surface of the infected area (anthill).
By the way! Mustard will help you get rid of slugs in cabbage beds.
Video: mustard is a safe remedy for ants in a greenhouse
In addition to the above methods and means of dealing with garden ants, scattering around ant houses sometimes helpsmillet, semolina (better to useold and rancid), salt and even ammonium nitrate. If the cereals are harmless enough, the salt will hardly fertilize your soil. But ammonium nitrate is a very powerful nitrogen fertilizer, so you need to be careful with it, because the plant under which you scatter it for small pests can begin to “fatten”, increasing the green mass to the detriment of fruiting.
Video: the easiest ways to fight ants - millet and semolina
Harsh odors and repellent plants
Ants don't like strong smells. Therefore, as such frightening aromas, you can lay out the following smelling foods and plants next to the anthills (and it is even better to make infusions from them, except for herring):
- smoked herring head;
- anise leaves;
- elderberry leaves;
- crushed rhubarb stem and leaves;
- tomato tops (although, most likely, this is some kind of myth, because little bandits can often be found in a greenhouse with tomatoes);
- orange (citrus) peel;
- vanillin (not vanilla sugar);
- finely chopped garlic;
- Birch tar;
- urine.
Advice! You can prepare a garlic infusion for watering the anthill: take 1 liter of warm water and one chopped head of garlic, let it brew for 2-3 hours.
Water the nest several times over a couple of days.
Video: how to get rid of ants with rhubarb
It is very good to plant strong-smelling plants near the beds (or directly on them), most of all suffering from ants:
Although, as practice shows, you can often find ants near these plants, or even on them.
Natural enemies
You can remove ants from the site by attracting them to the country. turn-necks... In addition to ants, this bird feeds on aphids, as well as all kinds of caterpillars. It is believed that the turtleneck is not very afraid of humans and often settles in gardens.As for how to attract her, as far as is known, if a turtleneck liked a hollow or a birdhouse, then she can throw someone else's nest out of it and make her own there.
It also feeds on ants ant-eater, but you will hardly be able to attract him to your summer cottage. It is also impossible to buy it, except that a special tool with the same name.
Fishing belts for saving trees
To prevent ants from attacking young shoots of fruit trees and bushes, you can use special Velcro belts. If they want to climb a tree, they will simply stick firmly to the surface of the trap.
Video: how to apply a trapping belt from ants, aphids, moth caterpillars, weevils and other pests of fruit trees
Mechanical methods
Some try to get rid of ants by watering (or rather, scalding) their nests. hot water. Type analogueprocessing currants with boiling water in spring and autumn... But the effectiveness of this method is very conditional, since the water may not have time to penetrate deep enough.
Video: a simple folk way to rid the garden of ants using boiling water
Important! If there is a useful plant next to the anthill, then boiling water can damage its roots.
A positive solution would be dig up and destroy the anthill with shovels, but it should be understood that a female ant queen can be located at a depth of more than 1 meter. Therefore, it is much more effective, not just to dig it up, but also additionally pour it into the nests wood ash or ash... Also suitable as a deterrent ingredient vegetable oil (eg, sunflower). For increase the effect you can additionally add some more pungent-smelling plant, for example, cloves, anise, bay leaf.
Instead of a conclusion! All means and methods of dealing with garden ants really work, but under certain conditions of place and time, that is, it will not be a panacea for you. What helped to get rid of small pests in one garden may not work in another, and vice versa. Small insects adapt over time, develop resistance to our means of protection. Therefore, experiment, try different methods and fight the dacha enemy to the bitter end.
Video: how to overcome garden ants