Where Is The Ant Nest
If you can’t easily find the anthill in your yard, you must do a bit of detective work. Since this species of ant loves sugar and fat, put a bit of each of these foods outside in areas where you have seen ants . If the bait is left untouched, switch it to another spot. Once the ants find it, they will create and maintain a path back to the nest.
The first method for destroying the nest is all-natural and can work effectively. Simply fill a pot with boiling water, add some liquid soap, and pour it right into the anthills entry point while the water is steaming. The writer from the Trussville Tribune also recommends boric acid, which can be sprinkled onto the entry point. You can even mix it with water and sugar to make it more appealing to the ground ants. However, keep in mind that boric acid is toxic to humans and pets.
Find And Eliminate Ant Trails
If youve ever observed ants, you may have noticed that they almost always follow straight lines in single-file order. This is because ants leave pheromone trails behind them to lead other ants to sources of food.
If youre seeing lines of ants coming in, the first step you need to take is to remove the ant trail. The best way to do this is to use a wet sponge and soap to clean the entire path of the ant trail, including the ants that are currently on it.
Doing this step will eliminate the pheromone trail and make it less likely that other ants will follow behind later.
Garlic Or Cayenne Pepper With Hot Water
Though the hot water method works great on its own, if you want to really win over them, you can include some of their most dangerous enemies like garlic and cayenne pepper.
Fire ants hate cayenne pepper and some cant bear the smell of garlic.
Including garlic and cayenne pepper in the hot water will kill them significantly wiping out all the chances of their survival.
- Get lots of garlic cloves and cayenne pepper
- Grind the cloves in powdery form and put it with pepper in the utensil in which the water is boiling
- Pour the cayenne pepper- garlic- hot water mix in the holes and get away as soon as possible to prevent from getting bitten
Just follow the same procedure above making sure you attack at night when most of the fire ants are at their home.
An additional tip here is to pour the mix into a spray bottle after the water has cooled down.
Take a spray bottle and go to the areas where the mounds are located.
You should also check behind telephone boxes, AC vents, carpets, and other crevices and holes from where they may have crept through.
Just use the spray as soon as you see them and also spray nearby areas to prevent more from coming.
Also Check: How Much Does Trugreen Cost A Month
How Do I Find Ant Colonies
Ants are social creatures and live in large colonies. They are also hard workers and adhere to a rigid hierarchy. Ant colonies typically consist of a queen, who is responsible for laying eggs, males, whose primary job is mating, and worker ants. These take care of eggs while maintaining the nest and gathering food. One of the ways they do this is by burrowing tunnels to other areas.
Following trails of worker ants are one of the ways you are most likely to find the colony. Knowing where they like to hide is half the battle. The University of Missouri identifies four common types of ants and the most likely places for them to build colonies:
- Odorous house ants: While often found in homes, colonies are generally located outside. Look under stones, old bark, or areas of shallow soil
- Pavement ants: As their name implies, these can be found near sidewalks or paving stones
- Larger yellow ants: These nest in soil along your homes foundation
- Field ants: These include a variety of different species, including fire ants. They are easy to find due to their large mounds, which can measure up to one foot in diameter.
Carpenter ants are another common type of ant and one of the most destructive. Rather than spending time underground, they are likely to build colonies in decaying wood around your property or in old railroad ties used for landscaping.
Natural & Home Made Methods Of Killing Ants In Your Lawn
There are several natural and home remedies that it can use to kill ants on your lawn. These methods include
Using Boiling Water.
Poring boiling water into an ants nest is the simplest and most widely used method of kill an ant nest. Try and locate all the entrances and pour boiling water into them. It will immediately kill most of the ants inside. Although some ant hills may appear small, most of them are bigger underneath and are home to several colonies. Using boiling water has some drawbacks, though. They include:
- Boiling water wont kill off the entire colony because of the big size of the nests.
- It often takes several attempts to notice success
- Using hot water can result in boggy and wet areas in your lawn.
- Hot water can scald your grass, turning it to brown.
Peppermint
Did you know that Peppermint is an insect repellant? You can plant Peppermint in your home or use it as a natural remedy to get rid of ants. Ants hate the scent. Apart from repelling ants, planting this plant will leave your home smelling minty fresh! Plant peppermint around the perimeter and entryways of your home.
You can also place peppermint cotton balls in areas where the ants frequent. Like most essential oils, keep this oil out of reach of pets, who may become very ill if exposed to this oil. You can find peppermint essential oil at your local grocery store.
Raking ant mounds
Spraying soap and water.
Vinegar
Cinnamon
Using Olive Oil and Dishwashing Liquid
Chili Pepper
Also Check: Where Are Cub Cadet Lawn Mowers Made
Tiny Ant Hills All Over Lawn: What Can You Do To Prevent This
Ants are attracted to your lawn or garden because they are searching for the food source, water, or shelter. If your lawn is well-drained or has good food sources there is a great possibility of getting ant infestations or re-establishment of previous colonies.
Some ant species are attracted to organic mulches or organic fertilizers that can be a potential food source for ants. Ants are also drawn to specific plants and they help in their flowering and seed dispersal. Small colonies of ants are not a threat to your lawn and their tiny ant hills are somewhat easy to get rid of and prevent from appearing.
- You can plant ant repellent plants or treat your lawn with insecticides around the borders to eliminate the chances of larger ant infestations.
- To avoid the re-establishment of ant colonies in your lawn displace the compost piles and trash bins far from your lawn and monitor if there are ant hills in your lawn. Rake the tiny anthills to disrupt the re-colonization of ants and treat them with insecticide spray or hot water.
How To Eradicate Anthills
Physically speaking, it is not very hard to get rid of an anthill. If the mound has been fairly recently constructed, it could be as simple as knocking it down with a rake or sweeping it away with a broom. If hardened and more mature, it may take a shovel and a little more elbow grease to eliminate the structure.
The problem lies in the fact that once you get rid of the physical evidence, it will likely reappear due to the ants tunneling further into the earth and depositing more dirt at the surface. The true way to eradicate anthills in your yard is by eradicating the ants themselves.
You May Like: How To Clean Mold Off Plastic Outdoor Furniture
Effective Ways To Kill Ants Outside
When most people think of ant infestations, they imagine tiny critters crawling around the inside of their home. While it can certainly be frustrating when ants make their way into your house, they can be equally troubling when theyre outside of your home. In fact, failing to address outdoor ants near your home will greatly increase your chances of an indoor infestation.
If you step outside for some fresh air and notice a large number of ants around your home, its time to take action and protect your property from these pests. Learn how to kill ants outside so that you can keep your yard and your home pest-free.
Recurring Infestations
If youre like most homeowners, youve probably eliminated an ant infestation in your home only to have these pests return at full force a few days later. The reason for this is very simple: You failed to kill the ants outside.
Many ant infestations are a result of having an ant hill in your yard and unless you get rid of the ant hill, your home will never be completely free from these insects. However many ants you see in your home, there are thousands more in the colony waiting for their chance to make their way into your house. Even if it seems like youve gotten rid of all the ants near your home, queens can lay eggs that total in the thousands on a daily basis.
Try Ant Baits
Use Boiling Water
Anthill Treatment
Apply Insecticide to Your Yard
Kill Ants Outside
- TAGS
How To Get Rid Of Ant Hills Naturally Without Killing Grass Home Remedies
When you intend to get rid of ant hill, you have to do it carefully. The goal is to reach the queen and destroy the entire colony. The natural methods are helpful in that it will get rid of ant hills without killing grass.
Other than the methods discussed above, you may opt for natural home remedies. They are helpful. Here are some of the home remedies to use:
Read Also: Where Are Greenworks Products Made
The Best Ways To Remove Ants From Yard
To keep ants out of your yard, its necessary to:
- Keep your grass and landscaping healthy and trimmed.
- Eradicate insects, such as aphids, that ants like.
- Remove trash containers and other attractants.
- Plant flowers, such as marigolds, that ants avoid.
Applying mint essential oils, especially peppermint oil, repels ants.
Their chemical trails are necessary for ants to survive. You can remove ants by removing their trails. You know youve discovered a trail when you see a line of ants. Squashing the ants doesnt help, nor does killing a single scout ant.
Putting a strong smelling substance on the trail will often mask the chemical scent the ants have deposited.
Once they lose their trail, ants cant find their way back to the nest or to their food source. Being lost is the death knell for an ant. When those responsible for bringing food to the nest dont return, the remaining ants leave the area.
How To Get Rid Of Large Ant Hills & Colonies
Swatting away a few ants or using a magnifier to burn them off is something everyone can do. The problem is dealing with massive colonies and large ant hills that arent visible.
So, if you want to know how to get rid of large ant hills & colonies, youll first need to familiarize yourself with ant behavior, different types of killing methods, and the various types of products you can use.
Read Also: How Much Peat Moss For Lawn
Kicking Ants Out Permanently
The secret of success in controlling an ant infestation is locating and destroying the ant colony, says the Penn State Extension.
That includes killing the queen and her young.
Bachman, who also hosts the award-winning Southern Gardening TV program, recommends a broadcast bait application applied at intervals throughout the year across the entire lawn.
He uses holidays to mark application dates: Easter, Fourth of July and Labor Day. The application should keep the area clear of ants for about three months, he says.
Bachman applies the ant bait insecticide across his entire lawn.
Make Use Of Boric Acid
Boric acid is also known to kill fire ants very quickly.
You can easily find them at pest control shop and use it wherever needed.
Just sprinkle the powder all over your garden and the places where fire ants majorly go to forage.
You can also use some bait and put boric acid all over it. As soon as the fire ants consume it, they will die.
Some guidelines to use baits for fire ants are:
- Use the bait only when the weather is sunny as fire ants are usually active around their dens during this time
- Do not keep bait if the weather is very hot or rainy. The fire ants dont go out under such weather conditions
- You can get an ant-bait plate and put the bait in it. It will keep the bait dry and away from the reach of pets and children
Don’t Miss: Kill Wild Violets In Lawn
Washing Up Liquid And Olive Oil Or Canola Oil
By adding olive oil or canola oil, some people claim the mixture becomes more effective at killing the ants. The theory is that the oil blocks up the spiracles, openings in the ants exoskeletons that they breathe through, effectively suffocating them to death.
Mix one tablespoon of oil, one tablespoon of washing up liquid and a quart of water to create the solution then use it as a spray or to pour into the nest.
Pros
- Arguably more effective than using soap and water alone
- Cheap and easy to make with ingredients most people have at home
Cons
Weve Put Together A List Of 21 Natural Solutions To Resolve Annoying Ant Invasions Without The Use Of Harsh Chemicals Check It Out
In spring, summer, and fall, the insect world is alive and well and busy invading your home. And the most active of them all are ants. Ants can build mounds in your yard, making their way into potted plants, and your kitchen and garage. So what can you do to get rid of these pesky critters? Weve put together a list of 21 natural solutions to resolve annoying ant invasionsof any varietywithout the use of harsh chemicals!
You May Like: Trugreen Cost Per Month
How To Get Rid Of Ants In The House
Ant infestations are the number one reason people call a professional pest control company. Ants in your home are tough to get rid of! It seems like no matter how many you kill, there is another army of ants to take their place. Ant species come in many sizes, colors, and food preferences. The first step in getting rid of ants is to perform a thorough inspection of your home and yard. A thorough inspection should reveal the type of ant you are dealing with and possibly where the nest is located. Typically, kitchens and bathrooms are the best places to begin your ant inspection, but your inspection will likely lead you outdoors as well.
How To Get Rid Of Big
Another tramp ant that is a pest of significance in Florida is the big-headed ant. The big-headed ant is native to the islands of the Indian Ocean but it now well established in south and central Florida. Thankfully, big-headed ants do not normally bite humans or sting, in the insect world they are considered pretty aggressive. The worker caste is divided into two categories, majors and minors. The minor workers are small brown normal looking ants. The major workers are the name-sake of the species. They are about twice the size of the minor workers and their heads are very large in relation to their bodies. With the strong jaws of the major worker, big headed ants can defend their nest against fire ants and other invading insects.
Big headed ants nest in the soil. They displace large amounts of soil as they excavate their underground tunnels. They often build nests under objects such as bricks, flower pots, along the base of structures and walkways. The ant piles created by big headed ants are numerous and distinctive. They can tunnel under foundations and come into your home via cracks in the foundation or slab. When foraging big-headed ants come indoors they often leave dirt and debris around baseboards, windows, and bathrooms, and kitchens.
Recommended Reading: How To Kill Wild Violet Weeds In Lawn
How Do You Get Rid Of An Outdoor Ant Infestation In Your Yard
To wipe out ant mounds and kill the queen you can pour any one of the following into the mound: boiling water, room-temperature carbonated water, or water mixed with vinegar. All of these solutions require little effort and can be made with simple household products.
To wipe out stubborn ants, outdoor liquid baits are very effective, as is applying a pesticide mound killer and watering it into the soil. If you want to use a natural ant poison that wont harm children or pets, mix diatomaceous earth into a destroyed mound to kill ants. If you want to skip these products altogether, dig up ant mounds and flatten the soil to trap ants inside. Each of these solutions is cheap and works to drive out harmful pests fast.
See more
The Quickest Way To Get Rid Of Ants In Your Home
How to get rid of ants permanently is a popular question equally popular to How to get rid of ants in the Kitchen. If you are having trouble getting rid of ants, youre far from alone as many people find ants moving into their houses as soon as warmer weather sets in.
If youre tired of spotting ants crawling on your floors, walls, or getting into the food pantry youve come to the right place.
How Do You Get Rid Of Ants?
To get rid of ants permanently, you should follow 3 basic steps: First, find and eliminate the Ant Trail. Second, Set out Ant Bait to kill the ant colony, and Lastly, Spray the perimeter of your house foundation, interior baseboards, and all entry points into the house to prevent new ant colonies, And repeat quarterly.
Today, well provide easy instructions on how to not only kill ants but how to get rid of ants permanently.
Don’t Miss: How To Change Oil On Craftsman Zero Turn Mower
