Hey blades. I need an organic way to rid my veg room of ants. They made a colony in the pots in my veg room. Please help blades
Try a 50/50 mix of confectioner's sugar and baking soda, the sugar acts as the attractant but the baking soda does the job. The ants can't tell the difference between the very fine sugar and the baking soda. Take a bottle cap and push it into the soil so the ants can gain access, fill the caps with mixture, if they feed they will die. I would remove the caps to water then replace. Try this method for your pots. Now for others areas,( around doors, ant trails, floors etc.) add boric acid to the above mix at a 1/1/1 ratio. the boric acid clings to their bodies, when they return to the colony, they treat it themselves. I don't think the small amount of baking soda that might contact the soil would create much concern. hth tb
DE...... (diatomaceous earth) ......it will rip their tiny exoskeletons to shreds causing the ants to dehydrate without harm to your plants. Pesticidal Dusts
I've read anecdotal evidence that ants colonies are good for growing cannabis. Someone planted an outdoor plant right in the middle of a fire ant hill and said it was the best of the season. The ants would 'borrow' some sap, and the plant presumably gleaned some nutrients from their waste/stock piles. Symbiosis, at it's finest.
Not to derail the thread, but have you seen the artwork being made by pouring molten aluminum into fire ant hills? It's controversial but sure makes for some fascinating castings. http://www.anthillart.com/
Spider mites "excrete" honey doo as waste, the ants protect the sm's from predators (like lady bugs) in order to harfest the sm poo
Orange Oil , Delimone Here this worked on my eggplant ,it has to soak the pot . didn't bother it a bit, I have never tried it on MJ , Mound drench formula. The concentrate is 1/3 orange oil, 1/3 liquid molasses, and 1/3 compost tea. Mix 4-6 oz. of the concentrate per gallon of water and pour straight into the center of mounds. [SIZE=13.60000228881836px]I added a little soap it [/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333015441895px]dissolves[/SIZE][SIZE=13.60000228881836px] their [/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333015441895px]exoskeletons[/SIZE] [SIZE=13.60000228881836px] Turn's them into [/SIZE][SIZE=13.333333015441895px]fertilizer[/SIZE][SIZE=13.60000228881836px] Tough way to die LOL[/SIZE]
I don't think mites do this. It is aphids that the ants raise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43id_NRajDo&feature=youtube_gdata_player Twas Ever Thus!