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Jeßus
Guest
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 Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 2:34 pm Post subject: Ant problem |
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Hi All,
I have a 'slight' ant problem here - never seen anything like it before!
They're getting into anything and everything inside the house, and
unfortunately that's not much of an exaggeration :/
Anyway, I'll stick to the garden side of the problem:
Basically they are killing off my plants one by one. So far they've
killed off a few beans, some Kohl Rabi and now one of my Dill plants
is terminal.
Ditto with a Rosemary in a pot. One of my Corianders is looking a little
iffy too.
At first I didn't twig to the problem being ants, but closer inspection
today showed ant trails through the mulch around the affected plants.
As to what kind of ants... not sure, but they're small (.5mm) and dark
brown to black in colour.
I'm sure some of you have had to deal with this problem before, so I'm
hoping you'll have some ideas or solutions...
I grow organically, but am open to any ideas as I'm going to have to do
something soon.
I've tried 'ant sand' and every type of 'ant rid' in the
past, but it doesn't seem to have an impact on the little buggers.
TIA for any ideas  |
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Jonno
Guest
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| Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 4:36 pm Post subject: Re: Ant problem |
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I reckon you could be in for some rain maybe?
Is it dry there?
We had ants come inside into our electric jug looking for water.
when it was very dry in midsummer.
They may be after the moisture in leaves.
Jeßus wrote:
| Quote: | Hi All,
I have a 'slight' ant problem here - never seen anything like it before!
They're getting into anything and everything inside the house, and
unfortunately that's not much of an exaggeration :/
Anyway, I'll stick to the garden side of the problem:
Basically they are killing off my plants one by one. So far they've
killed off a few beans, some Kohl Rabi and now one of my Dill plants
is terminal.
Ditto with a Rosemary in a pot. One of my Corianders is looking a little
iffy too.
At first I didn't twig to the problem being ants, but closer inspection
today showed ant trails through the mulch around the affected plants.
As to what kind of ants... not sure, but they're small (.5mm) and dark
brown to black in colour.
I'm sure some of you have had to deal with this problem before, so I'm
hoping you'll have some ideas or solutions...
I grow organically, but am open to any ideas as I'm going to have to do
something soon.
I've tried 'ant sand' and every type of 'ant rid' in the
past, but it doesn't seem to have an impact on the little buggers.
TIA for any ideas |
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David
Guest
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| Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 5:09 pm Post subject: Re: Ant problem |
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Hi,
Yep, well the ants may be due to rain coming or the fact that your
place is the only one with moisture around.
However, you say that .....
| Quote: | I grow organically,
|
But then say .....
| Quote: | I've tried 'ant sand'
|
Correct me if I'm wrong but "Ant Sand" contains Chlorpyrifos which is
the last thing you want around "veges" etc, whether growing organically
or not. If you are using/have used Chlorpyrifos, which is probably the
most toxic Organochlorine known, then I wouldn't be consuming anything
from your garden for years.........
Cheers,
David. |
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Jonno
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2007 1:13 am Post subject: Re: Ant problem |
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Theyre probably argentinian ants . Where do you live?
Have a look here, to see if theyre the same::::
http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/WebPages/CART-6PM2EH?open
David wrote:
| Quote: | Hi,
Yep, well the ants may be due to rain coming or the fact that your
place is the only one with moisture around.
However, you say that .....
I grow organically,
But then say .....
I've tried 'ant sand'
Correct me if I'm wrong but "Ant Sand" contains Chlorpyrifos which is
the last thing you want around "veges" etc, whether growing organically
or not. If you are using/have used Chlorpyrifos, which is probably the
most toxic Organochlorine known, then I wouldn't be consuming anything
from your garden for years.........
Cheers,
David. |
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Jeßus
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2007 4:12 am Post subject: Re: Ant problem |
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On Fri, 13 Apr 2007 21:36:06 +1000, Jonno wrote:
Hi Jonno,
| Quote: | I reckon you could be in for some rain maybe?
|
Yeah, possibly? They do come in waves (of sorts) although they are around
more often than not, regardless of weather. But impending rain does seem
to make them more active.
I would say we have had a fair bit of rain overall in recent weeks, but
the soil here is very quick draining. I'm right on the coastline, in Kiama
NSW (Illawarra region)
Either way, the ants tend to be ever present.
| Quote: | We had ants come inside into our electric jug looking for water. when it
was very dry in midsummer.
They may be after the moisture in leaves.
|
They do seem to seek out moisture, lately theyve even invaded the dunny
bowl here, and I can't even leave fresh cut herbs or other vegetable
matter on the kitchen bench for longer than about 15 minutes.
I'm even brushing them off of my computer desk as I type this...
I find it a little odd, since it isnt /that/ bloody dry here, as mentioned
we have had a fair bit of rain here this year. And yet, they do seem to be
seeking out moisture all the same - not to mention food of course.
Hmm, theyre much darker than in that photo, but apart from that
seem to be the same size and shape...
(nice site though - I'll be moving to Tassie in a few months myself).
Thanks for the help Jonno, I might phone the ag dept next week and see
what they might suggest. |
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giovani
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2007 1:47 pm Post subject: Re: Ant problem |
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Jeßus wrote:
| Quote: | Hi All,
I have a 'slight' ant problem here - never seen anything like it before!
They're getting into anything and everything inside the house, and
unfortunately that's not much of an exaggeration :/
|
Had the same problem here (WA) 2 or 3 times this year
First time in years that ants were severe <inside> the house
(House is on stumps,so generally we are pretty well bug free; except
when the cats push the doors open and the flies say "thanks")
They were just the normal small red / brown ones though - if you crush
one, they have a very distinctive smell. Understand that Argentine Ants
do not give off any smell when crushed (from book learning from years
ago; never actually encountered any)
| Quote: | As to what kind of ants... not sure, but they're small (.5mm) and dark
brown to black in colour.
|
er, 0.5mm or 5 mm?
If the former, I must admit my eyesight does not measure up these days ;)
Anyway, I'll stick to the garden side of the problem:
| Quote: | Basically they are killing off my plants one by one. So far they've
killed off a few beans, some Kohl Rabi and now one of my Dill plants
is terminal.
Ditto with a Rosemary in a pot. One of my Corianders is looking a little
iffy too.
|
<snip> garden description
Over the years we have used all sorts of ant powders etc with little
real success. Basically it seems that the easiest thing is to kill off
the odd one and just "wait 'em out". They seem to come and go in cycles.
The one thing we have found to be quite good in eliminating / moving
them on is talcum powder (Johnson's Baby if u are feeling rich;
otherwise any old - read cheapest - homebrand). Basically sprinkle this
in a circle around the ant hole. Seems that the ants track this back
into the nest and (from dim memory) suffocate as the powder coats their
bodies. Can also put some along their trails. We have found this works
as well as anything and (should be) less harmful to the environment.
For vegie plants, perhaps sprinkle a circle around each plant or set of
plants - this of course presupposes that you are not using sprinklers ;)
good luck
giovani |
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Jonno
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2007 1:53 pm Post subject: Re: Ant problem |
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Jeßus wrote:
| Quote: | On Fri, 13 Apr 2007 21:36:06 +1000, Jonno wrote:
Hi Jonno,
I reckon you could be in for some rain maybe?
Yeah, possibly? They do come in waves (of sorts) although they are around
more often than not, regardless of weather. But impending rain does seem
to make them more active.
Is it dry there?
I would say we have had a fair bit of rain overall in recent weeks, but
the soil here is very quick draining. I'm right on the coastline, in Kiama
NSW (Illawarra region)
Either way, the ants tend to be ever present.
We had ants come inside into our electric jug looking for water. when it
was very dry in midsummer.
They may be after the moisture in leaves.
They do seem to seek out moisture, lately theyve even invaded the dunny
bowl here, and I can't even leave fresh cut herbs or other vegetable
matter on the kitchen bench for longer than about 15 minutes.
I'm even brushing them off of my computer desk as I type this...
I find it a little odd, since it isnt /that/ bloody dry here, as mentioned
we have had a fair bit of rain here this year. And yet, they do seem to be
seeking out moisture all the same - not to mention food of course.
Theyre probably argentinian ants . Where do you live?
Have a look here, to see if theyre the same::::
http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/WebPages/CART-6PM2EH?open
Hmm, theyre much darker than in that photo, but apart from that
seem to be the same size and shape...
(nice site though - I'll be moving to Tassie in a few months myself).
Thanks for the help Jonno, I might phone the ag dept next week and see
what they might suggest.
|
Try putting a few on your scanner if you have one.Then get on their
website and sen em ther pic. |
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Loosecanon
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Apr 14, 2007 1:53 pm Post subject: Re: Ant problem |
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"Jonno" <heyyou@getoffamicloud.com.> wrote in message
news:4620c2ad$0$22843$afc38c87@news.optusnet.com.au...
| Quote: | Jeßus wrote:
On Fri, 13 Apr 2007 21:36:06 +1000, Jonno wrote:
Hi Jonno,
I reckon you could be in for some rain maybe?
Yeah, possibly? They do come in waves (of sorts) although they are around
more often than not, regardless of weather. But impending rain does seem
to make them more active.
Is it dry there?
I would say we have had a fair bit of rain overall in recent weeks, but
the soil here is very quick draining. I'm right on the coastline, in
Kiama
NSW (Illawarra region)
Either way, the ants tend to be ever present.
We had ants come inside into our electric jug looking for water. when it
was very dry in midsummer.
They may be after the moisture in leaves.
They do seem to seek out moisture, lately theyve even invaded the dunny
bowl here, and I can't even leave fresh cut herbs or other vegetable
matter on the kitchen bench for longer than about 15 minutes.
I'm even brushing them off of my computer desk as I type this...
I find it a little odd, since it isnt /that/ bloody dry here, as
mentioned
we have had a fair bit of rain here this year. And yet, they do seem to
be
seeking out moisture all the same - not to mention food of course.
Theyre probably argentinian ants . Where do you live?
Have a look here, to see if theyre the same::::
http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/WebPages/CART-6PM2EH?open
Hmm, theyre much darker than in that photo, but apart from that
seem to be the same size and shape... (nice site though - I'll be moving
to Tassie in a few months myself).
Thanks for the help Jonno, I might phone the ag dept next week and see
what they might suggest.
Try putting a few on your scanner if you have one.Then get on their
website and sen em ther pic.
|
I suspect they are carpenter ants. They are small, also prone to invading
houses and I think there are varieties that eat plants.
I am in WA and after a recent home invasion went on the attack. I sprinkled
talcum powder along the back of the house that they were gaining access
through. I found a nest which I poured some kerosene down. I also found some
trails coming from neighbours which I made a syrup up for. The syrup was 1
cup of sugar, 1/2 cup of water , 1 tablespoon of borax, 1 tablespoon of
boracic acid. The mix was boiled for 3 minutes and bottled when cool. I just
put a teaspoon of this across the trails and they ate it with relish but are
gone 2 days later. You can use this on window sills and bench tops inside,
sticky but effective.
Around the same time I also had a termite scare in the wall of a
hardflex/polystyrene/gyprock patio enclosure. The termites came in and ate
all the brown paper off the unexposed side of the gyprock. I suspect the
ants were coming in to eat the termites and having a look around for other
food sources. My only clue to termites was a small trail of mud where the
gyprock butted up against an aluminium window. I was lucky as only aluminium
channeling was used and no wood. I have installed a moisture barrier now
which keeps the soil drier than before making it less attractive to
termites. I also had a spot treatment and installed some termite monitors
which I check monthly. So have a look for signs of termites as well.
Cheers
Richard |
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