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Posted: Apr/30/2006 4:12 AM PST
I'm in Texas - and fire ants are always a problem. Boiling water doesn't work--for more than a few hours at least. Wonder about vinegar? My hubby uses Ortho stuff and it works - fast - but what is it doing to us? And the future world? Nothing good, I'm sure. Maybe we need to import and market anteaters! Seriously, any new ideas? And thanks........................... |
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Posted: Apr/30/2006 5:05 AM PST
Unfortunately fire ants have recently been discovered over here too and the authorities have been trying to eliminate them....The latest in organic control is found in these link I posted. It's not an insecticide as such but a bacterium based bait. It's being trailled here at the moment  http://www.commonsensecare.com/fire-ant-control .html http://www.homestead.com/ipmofalaska/files/spin osad.html |
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Posted: May/01/2006 8:25 PM PST
My ankle hurts just thinking about them. They swarmed over my right foot a couple of years back and it swelled up horribly. Tell your husband to take that stuff to the Haz-Mat dump. I can almost smell the fumes from here!  Their nest is too deep for boiling water to work very well. Vinegar won't get rid of them but works great for disrupting their sense of direction. But the most effective method I've found is just to over grow the area of the nest. No sun can penetrate the ground there anymore, and they seem to have moved on to an easier home. They like hot direct sunlight. Also try attracting birds to the area of the nest.Richard |
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Posted: May/02/2006 2:07 AM PST
Thanks for that information John. I'll be on my way to get some one day this week. I have them in every plot of ground I dig up to plant in and all my container plants. I don't think I go out to work in the yard where I don't get at least one sting. I keep aloe vera plants and am constantly breaking off a pinch to slather on an ant bite. |
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Posted: May/03/2006 12:47 AM PST
OMG Those fire ants are one thing I do NOT miss from the south. I don't miss the giant cockroaches that can carry you away in your sleep either 
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Posted: May/03/2006 4:35 PM PST
A friend of mine had some luck with laying cucmber peelings over the mound to cover it. However, it never seemed to work for me. I'm like you Marie, every time I go out in the yard, I get bit. |
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Posted: May/05/2006 1:37 AM PST
my son in law[the sadistic so and so][not really,,i love him]swears that if you take a shovel full of one mound and dump it on another mound the worker ants will kill each other,,trying to protect thier queen,,says it works for him.he and my daughter live in houston,, |
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Posted: May/06/2006 11:35 AM PST
:carrot: I will be trying the shovel transfer first! It sounds too easy to work but its certainly worth a try for a non chemical approach. I thank all of you for your suggestions and I'll be trying them - one by one. Lynn |
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Posted: May/06/2006 4:02 PM PST
Quote: Originally posted by sedumgrow my son in law[the sadistic so and so][not really,,i love him]swears that if you take a shovel full of one mound and dump it on another mound the worker ants will kill each other,,trying to protect thier queen,,says it works for him.he and my daughter live in houston,,Wow, that's really viscious ... I am wildly impressed. Does your SIL have any ideas for ground dwelling pests like chipmunks? [I don't mind a few, but they have really gotten out of control.] |
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Posted: May/06/2006 8:13 PM PST
Quote: Originally posted by sedumgrow my son in law[the sadistic so and so][not really,,i love him]swears that if you take a shovel full of one mound and dump it on another mound the worker ants will kill each other,,trying to protect thier queen,,says it works for him.he and my daughter live in houston,,Hmmm ... I wonder if a similar method would work for the annoying neighborhood kids. Richard |
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