Why Are There So Many Ants This Year 2020
Warmer temperatures during the summer months mean that many ant colonies take flight on the same day, according to the Royal Society of Biology. This is why they were seen in such large numbers on Sunday, with people across the country complaining that parks and gardens had been invaded by the insects.
How To Kill Ants In Your Lawn Stop Anthills Now
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Most gardens have some form of a lawn. They are laid in most new gardens to provide entertainment space for adults and a playing area for children. But lawns can sometimes also be home to ants. These ants can become a real nuisance and destroy your lawn from beneath. Anthills have been a pain to me, so I set out to learn how to kill the ants in my lawn.
How to kill ants in your lawn? There are various ways to kill ants in lawns, Some are chemical, and others are organic. Natural ways include neem oil, cinnamon, hot water, and even dishwashing detergent. Depending on how the lawn is used will depend on the treatment.
Our homes are just like our castles. Unfortunately, they are not immune to attacks by massive armies of tiny ants. Ant invasions are not only annoying but also dangerous to your health and the health of pets living in your home. Who couldve thought that insects as small as ants could cause so much damage? Yes, they could. Despite being so tiny, these animals come in droves and work together.
Why Diy Treatments Wont Work
We often see customers whove tried to solve their funnel ant issue with DIY products theyve bought off the shelf at a local hardware or convenience store. The pesticides used in these products are usually either Permethrin or Bifenthrin.
These chemicals kill the ants on contact which is utterly pointless, as its impossible to kill ants deep beneath the surface. This of course means youre spot treating a handful of ants only, and after a couple of days, it rains, the mounds reappear, the ants return and back and youre back where you started. Youre just wasting your money and your time.
The bottom line is that youre never going to get on top of a funnel ant infestation using DIY products.
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Will They Return After You Kill Them
If you destroy their new habitat, the ants obviously wont return. However, this doesnt mean that your lawn will be 100% immune to in the future. A nice and soft lawn is irresistible for ant queens! The ants may return, but it may take several months or years for this to happen. And if they do come back again in the future, at least you know what to do!
Now that youre aware of several methods you can use to kill ants on your lawn, you should be able to keep your home ant-free, particularly if youre not fond of destroying ant hills. If you have multiple ant hills on your lawn, you should consider consulting a professional before choosing the best pest control solution.
How To Control Ants In Lawns Naturally
Since ants form social communities, which can live in an area just a few inches wide or a space many feet across, ant populations and their associated problems will vary. If you have one of the huge groups entrenched in your lawn, steps need to be taken to eradicate the insects.
Killing ants in your lawn is tricky business because children and pets use the area for play and traversing the garden. You can try a 3 percent solution of dish soap with water as a spray for an infested area.
Other possible treatments include diatomaceous earth or a borax and sugar water spray. Unless the infestation is particularly troublesome, the best remedy is to live with these beneficial insects. Most ants eat the larvae of lawn pests that they find amongst the roots of the grass. This is a win-win for the grass lover.
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How To Get Rid Of Sugar Ants
Sugar ants are commonly mistaken for pharaoh ants, acrobat ants and odorous house ants, but they are their own species. It is important to identify the type of ant that is the pest in your home or backyard in order to deal with it correctly. Sugar ants range from 2 to 15 mm in size. They are attracted to spills, stains and any traces of food, so check your kitchen, cupboards and pantries. Eliminating any sources of food is a means of prevention and elimination.
However, sometimes the infestation can be so widespread you have to call a professional pest control company to solve the problem.
How To Get Rid Of Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants are abundant in Ontario, and are common pests in homes, cottages and other buildings. The most common carpenter ants are the familiar large, black ants that are one-half inch or more in length and shiny black. One consistent characteristic of all carpenter ants is the smoothly rounded outline of the thorax when viewed from the side.
These unwelcome ants dig into wood and cause structural damage. Rather than use wood as a food source, carpenter ants dig into the wood and lay eggs in the hollowed frame. Carpenter ants also eat into Styrofoam, stucco and insulation. Typically, damage goes unnoticed until it is severe.
Before deciding on how to get rid of black ants, you should try to locate the nest. Locating the nest is beneficial in understanding the amount of damage sustained and allows you to assess the severity of the situation. This step is as important as it is difficult, especially if only a few ants are spotted at a given time. You can try observing ants to see if you can detect a pattern of movement. In spring and summer, carpenter ants are more active at night observing after sunset, with a flashlight, may give an indication of the source. Presence of sawdust is an important clue in locating ant nests.
If you have or suspect carpenter ants at your cottage, check out our blog post, How to Get Rid of Carpenter Ants at the Cottage for helpful prevention and removal advice.
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What Is A Colony Of Ants
If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not to fear the result of a hundred battles.
This quote may be a little over-dramatic, but it does help to know a little about the pest you wish to remove.
A colony of ants sometimes referred to as an ant society, is made up of thousands upon thousands of individual ants under the leadership of one queen. Other than the queen, there are also workers, soldiers and drones. Most species of ant build massive underground nests. These structures are incredibly complex and contain nursery rooms, farming rooms, food storage areas and even tunnels to control the airflow inside the nest.
We usually only see a few entrance mounds and small piles of fine dirt. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. Researchers in Brazil unearthed an abandoned ant nest, which covered an area of 500 sq ft and was measured to a depth of 26 ft. While nests of this size are uncommon, it does illustrate the fact that ant nests are much larger than we may initially think.
How To Get Rid Of Ants In Grass
Ants can be an annoying pest to deal with if theyre formed a colony on your lawn. Theyre small, hardy, and grow in number quite quickly.
While using insecticides might seem like the best way of killing ants in your lawn, there are some issues with doing this. Chemical pest control can kill off other insects that are beneficial for your lawn, and can cause unwanted environmental damage through water run-off. Its best to avoid using pesticides on grass your children and pets play on.
In this guide, well explain how to get rid of ants in your lawn, the eco-friendly, natural way.
But first, lets look at some of the issues ant colonies can cause for your lawn.
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Timing Broadcast Bait Applications
Apply broadcast bait applications around your yard, and foraging fire ants will take the bait and feed it to the rest of the colony. Baits should be applied to the grass and ground close to the time ants are actively foraging, and the ground is dry and rain is not forecasted for at least 24 hours. The time of day fire ants are actively foraging can vary, but you can determine this by spreading the bait in a small area. If the ants are foraging, theyll begin to remove the bait within 30 minutes of application. This means youve found the ideal time to apply the bait around your yard.
Ant Control And Lawn Health
Ants prefer lawns that are in poor health, which is sparse or patchy in areas.
Lawns in this condition become a perfect environment for ants to thrive and flourish. Therefore, the first step in controlling ants is to increase the health and vitality of the lawn itself.
A healthy lawn, with a nice healthy thatch layer and plenty of green leaves, is not a welcoming environment for ants. So, as a first step, learn about some of the basics of lawn care and aim to increase the health of the lawn. This will always start with the basics of regular fertilising and wetting agents, regular mowing to promote more spreading of the lawn runners, decreasing shade where required, and a good watering routine.
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How To Identify An Ant Problem
Ant activity spikes in the spring and fall. Changes in weather, including heavy rains or drought, can drive ants indoors looking for more hospitable areas in which to live. They can enter through any small opening in the home, and if you see one, more will soon follow.
Though small individually, an invasion of ants can cause all kinds of household problems. They can contaminate food and spread diseases, and some biting and stinging ants produce allergic reactions in humans and pets. Further, some species of ants can cause structural damage and chew through household wiring.
There can be some identification confusion between ants and termites the two seem similar upon initial encounter, but a closer look can reveal exactly which of the pests you are taxed with.
Ants:
- Have slender waists and bent antennae
- Have longer legs
- In winged specimens, front wings are longer than back wings
Termites:
- Have thick waists and straight antennae
- Have shorter legs
- In winged specimens, both pairs of wings are the same length
Because ants swarm, once you have an infestation, they can be difficult to dislodge. It takes vigilance and a combination of treatments using both home and perimeter insect control, but an ant problem can typically be resolved within a week or two. Follow-up prevention is key to ensure that they do not return.
Ant Hills In The Lawn: How To Get Rid Of Ant Hills In The Lawn
Ant hills or ant mounds in your lawn are the indications of an established ant colony. They are comprised of decomposed material, clay, sand, and tiny rock particles. It looks like a simple dome-like aggregate of soil and decomposed material. However, it can go up to several feet deeper and wider under the soil surface and form a complex labyrinth that provides a safe shelter to ants.
Underneath the soil, there are well-crafted chambers and tunnels for workers and queen. The mound also used as an insulator against extreme temperatures and harsh weather conditions. The colony of ants can grow up to thousands and millions if not disturbed. Simply, leveling the ant hill will not help to get rid get of the problem. There is a simple way that can kill most of the ants inside of the ant hill, try doing the following:
- The first step is to locate the anthills. You can place ant baits in order to track the ants back to the anthills. After locating ant hills, the easiest way to get rid of them is the application of boiling water directly over the mounds at the entry points of ants.
- Pour hot water to completely drench the ant mound. You can add liquid soap in the steaming hot water to increase its effectiveness.
If you want to know more about ant hills and the ways to get rid of them, click on the following link: How to Get Rid of Ant Hills: A Complete Guide.
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Are Some Ants Good For Your Lawn And Garden
Most of the ants are not a potential threat to your lawn. Anthills or mounds can be a cause of nuisance but in return, some ants help in soil aeration, pollination, seed dispersal, and protect your lawn from aphids. Ants eat up aphids, bugs, and other pests that can harm your lawn or garden. Ants facilitate the redistribution of nutrients in the soil, act as scavengers and decompose dead material and insects into fertilizer which helps in plant growth.
They patrol all over your lawn and protect your vegetation from plant-eating insects. They also help in flowering by eating the sticky outer layer around the buds which is a great food source for ants. However, keep an eye on the ant colonies in your lawn because established larger ant colonies can do more harm than help.
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Using Store Cupboard Ingredients To Deter Ants
Im reliably informed that ants hate peppermint. So heres a trick using a few ingredients from your store cupboard that will encourage the ants to move on without damaging your lawn.
Take 20 drops of peppermint essence . Dissolve them in vodka and then pour into a spray bottle with a pint or so of water. Give it a good shake and spray on and around the ants nest. You may need to repeat it 2-3 times a day for a couple of days but then, lo and behold, the creatures will up sticks and move away. Easy!
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When In Doubt Call A Professional Ant Exterminator
Of course, the easiest way to get rid of ants in your lawn is to call a professional ant control expert. Depending on the type of ants living in your backyard, the exterminator may use one or several methods of ant extermination, choosing the most effective and least damaging treatment options. By calling an expert, you can minimize damage to your lawn, remove ant mounds in record time, and enjoy your lawn all summer long. Call Antworks today for an ant extermination quote!
Is There A Natural Way To Treat For Ants/ant Hills On Your Lawn
- Sharon on May 24, 2017Hi there , you will not believe how incredible this works. Go and buy food grade diatemaceous earth and sprinkle it all around. The ants will be gone in hours. Be generous it is non toxic and very effective
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Negative Effects Of Ants In Your Lawn
One main negative effect ants make on your lawn is by them creating ant hills. Ant hills are made from the ants excavating soil from the dirt underneath the grass, which they placed on the lawns surface.
Ant hills make the surface of your yard uneven, meaning you or your children and trip over them when youre walking. A lawn mower could also get stuck or damaged by the mounds.
Ants also frequently eat through the roots of the grass while constructing their nests and tunnels, leaving barren areas throughout your yard.
Ants also farm aphids, which then supply the ants with honeydew that they create. Aphids are annoying insects to have in your yard because they eat many plants and grasses.
Kill The Ants But Not Your Lawn
- Try to avoid chemicals, if you can. Insecticides arent the most effective way to kill entire ant mounds, unless theyre professional grade and properly applied. Chemicals will also kill your grass in a short amount of time.
- Dont use boiling water. Another popular option that will definitely contribute to grass loss.
- Dont use vinegar. Acetic acid can dry out the top layer of your lawn.
- Dont use soap and water during the day. When you water your lawn with any kind of liquid during the day, youre essentially magnifying the suns effects on your grass, causing burns and deterioration. If the suns out, the water should be away!
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