Fire Ants are they a problem?

[Tecumseh]

I have a beautiful 5' tall female of unknown strain in an 18 g. planter in my yard. She's gorgeous, she looks like a Christmas tree. I've grown her from a freebie seed that I got from a Dutch seed bank. Yesterday I discovered that fire ants have nested in my planter. They seem to be entering and exiting the soil right were the plant comes out. They're traveling up and down the trunk. Are these little bastards gonna hurt my girl? And if so, what is the best way to get rid of them without hurting my plant.

As always, any help is appreciated.

 

[Tecumseh]

Well, that question has been answered. Yes, they are a problem.

I have applied DE, and crossed my fingers.

DE= diatomaceous earth

 

[KatharsisAmok]

I would be concerned. Might try feeding them cornmeal. I've heard that if they eat that, when they drink water it expands in their stomachs and kills them.

Oops, yeah, they suck.

 

[TorturedSoul]

The fire ants that I've seen had copperish colored heads, but I'll take your word for it as there are several varieties.

They mostly feed on younger plants (when they're not eating insects/animals), but as you noticed, mostly is not always.

If you see one of the large colony mounds in your yard, be careful if you wander too close to it. Most ants bite - fire ants bite only as a means to hold on so that they can bring their primary weapon to bear (their stinger). Their venom is an alkaloid that's pretty painful for the size of the sting, and has been known to kill sensitive individuals (especially those who've been rapidly stung by several dozen).

In the US, the FDA estimates more than US$5 billion is spent annually on medical treatment, damage, and control in RIFA-infested areas. Furthermore, the ants cause approximately US$750 million in damage annually to agricultural assets, including veterinarian bills and livestock loss, as well as crop loss.

I just read that in 70 years, some types of lizards in the US have developed longer legs and new behaviors to escape fire ants (which can kill a lizard in under a minute). Guess the ones with shorter-leg genes died off.

Nasty critters.

 

[Tecumseh]

Thanks for all the good info TSoul. Having lived in the S.E. for nearly 50 years now, I'm very familiar with these little 6 legged demons. I know that they will devour any critter that moves slower than they do, or that they can overwhelm with their numbers. This is the first that I'm learning of their hazard to plants tho.

I have several large mounds in my yard. They're impossible to get rid of. If you poison a mound, they just pop up several yards over. I'm hoping that the DE that I spread around the trunk of the plant will keep them from killing her.

 

[Droopy Dog]

I use AMDRO. Works good.

It's ground up corn cobs with a bit of poison in there. Sprinkle it around the mound, Not on it. The good workers take it right to the queen. Kills the queen and the rest of them die out pretty quick.

It's pretty mild on the toxic part since it's just targeting one ant, the queen. They don't re-infest very fast either. Good stuff.

DD

 

[Captain Kronic]

Posted this in the other thread like this one but I figure it couldn't hurt to post it again... may help another person too!

10 Ways To Kill Ants… Organically

1. Baking soda is poisonous to ants, spinkle it around your plants to ensure ants will stay away.

2. Flour & Baby Powder will keep ants from reaching your plants, ants will not cross the powder – so circle your plants with it.

3. You can use coffee grounds, chili powder, cinnamon, peppermint or black pepper. All deter ants and if you pour coffee grounds directly on an anthill, they will eat the coffee grounds and implode.

4. Grits, instant rice & cream of wheat can be sprinkled around plants. The ant will eat a piece of whichever you sprinkle, drink water and the grain expands and kills the ant.

5. Fill a spray bottle with 1 part vinegar and 1 part water and spray on plants. The acid in vinegar will kills ants.

6. Mix together one-third cup of molasses, six tablespoons of sugar, and six tablespoons of active dry yeast into a smooth paste. Use the mixture to coat strips of cardboard. Keep out of reach of pets and small children. You can leave mixture on a saucer outside anthill and they’ll eat it and die!

7. Fold contact paper in half, with the sticky side out and make a circle around base of plant. The ants get stuck on the paper – problem solved.

8. Cut off the bottom of a paper cup and cut a slit up the side of the cup and coat outside with vaseline and place around base of plant. You can also use packing tape.

9. Mix one cup of borax, two-thirds a cup sugar and one cup water. Dip cotton balls in the solution and place in areas near your anthill Ants will leave the plants alone and ingest the sweet mixture. The borax kills the ants.

10. Diatomaceous Earth is a commonly sold organic pesticide that will destroy the insects outer skeletons, causing the pests to die from dehydration.

EDIT: You can also take something like Gorilla tape and put it inside out on the base of the plant, if they do try to get passed it, they get stuck!