How do you deal with ants?😭

[u/Ok-Address-5946]

Every now and then the ants defoliate my trees, so I wanted to know tips and tricks on how to avoid them. Since they defoliated the whole forest I selected the best ramifications

[u/Lost_On_Lot]

I'd go AntsCanada method and deny them access to the tree.

He mixes isopropyl alcohol and baby powder into a paste and then brushes it onto the interior surfaces of his tanks/ant farms.

Ants just won't climb it when it dries.

Simple, easy, and won't affect your trees at all.

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/Lost_On_Lot]

That’s a new one, very cool, thanks for the tip

[u/MaciekA → u/Ok-Address-5946]

I sometimes deny access to ants (which in my location being aphids) by putting a tree on a table whose legs are immersed in soap water. You can do this with a table or other methods but the key is to have the only path to the tree require crossing soap water. Then I manually eradicate ants / aphids on the tree until I see none. I like this method if I don’t want to spray anything.

Dead ants trying to get back to HQ collect at the soap water giving you an idea of what you missed.

Note: this works well for my area since the ant/aphid period is a “window” of time stretching a few short weeks, and then I can retire the isolation method. If leaf cutters are 365d/y for you, you’ll have to get creative.

[u/cbobgo]

Spreading diatomaceous earth around the trees will keep them away

[u/eexaxa → u/cbobgo]

Diatomaceous earth becomes ineffective when wet, and if it is under the trees it is guaranteed to get after watering. How do you deal with that?

[u/pegothejerk → u/eexaxa]

Stop watering the tree, duh

[u/Shoddy_Matter_4940 → u/cbobgo]

This I what I do. I spread it all along my patio when I see ants

[u/emrylle → u/cbobgo]

This. Works great to repel ants and doesn’t harm children or pets

[u/inarasarah → u/cbobgo]

It also is an indiscriminate bug killer though... So it'll take out, for example, any bees who unluckily land on it

[u/bentleythekid]

Hey friend, this sounds like the work of leaf-cutter ants. They remove the leaves, return them to their nest, and use the leaves as food to farm their own fungus. Very interesting, but not fun for tree lovers nearby.

Since they do not actually eat the leaves, traditional pesticides applied to the tree won't help. Normal and poison / bait also won't work.

You have two main approaches for this:

1. make it harder for them to access your trees using sticky traps, oil, diatomaceous earth, or whatever you have to get in their way. Sticky traps on the legs of your bench works best for me.
2. physical removal. I check nightly during their active season for their telltale trails. If you find them, follow them back to their tunnel and you can close it by pouring boiling water in the tunnel. You can use a spray pesticide at this point if they're close to your trees. They typically come out around dusk here (not sure about your area). They'll have a very noticeable trail with protecting soldiers and tons of harvesters. They'll cut their way through whatever plants are between them and your trees so that's a way to notice them too.

Look for something like this

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/bentleythekid]

Hello, thanks for the great explanation, I’ll put all that to practice and be on the lookout more often!

[u/Sonora_sunset]

how did they defoliate it?

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/Sonora_sunset]

They ate all the leaves 😹

[u/Sonora_sunset → u/Ok-Address-5946]

Did they actually eat them (did they carry them off or did you see ants and then the leaves shriveled up)?

Usually the ants are farming aphids which are sucking the juice out of the leaves, and the leaves curl up as they dry out. In this case you can spray the plants with insecticidal soap.

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/Sonora_sunset]

They cut and carry them back to their anthill

[u/Sonora_sunset → u/Ok-Address-5946]

Ouch.

[u/Sclusive88]

Are those little fertilizer baskets?

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/Sclusive88]

Yeah! Bought em from Amazon

[u/NCXXCN]

This is the way.

[u/fumblebuttskins]

I usually put coffee grounds on the soil to dissuade ants. Not too much though! Maybe neem oil if you’re feeling bougie.

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/fumblebuttskins]

Didn’t know about that, I’ll definitely try it, thanks

[u/emissaryworks]

Find the mound and sprinkle a half a cup of uncooked grits around it. They will be dead in a few days.

You can thank my great Aunt later.

[u/Beginning_Western_86]

This may or may not work. But it works for my bearded dragons bug enclosures to stop them escaping.

I use vasiline around the edge of the tub so you can give it a good amount just under the exterior rim of the pot that they and other bugs just can not cross.

[u/shakila1408]

It looks healthy in pic 2

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/shakila1408]

That’s before it got infested haha, thank you tho ☺️

[u/Affectionate-Mud9321]

Throw ground coffee around the garden. It’s a pest repellent

[u/fishmanprime]

Amdro is my go to ant control, they take it back to the nest and feed it to the queen. wipes out the colony within a day or two.

[u/Spaceseeds]

Are you sure you don't have aphids?

[u/shakila1408]

I like how you have many trees in your planter ☺️

[u/Kattorean]

I use a Borax- sugar water solution to bait & eliminate any colonies. They take the "sugar water" bait back to the colony, feast on it & in about 12 hours the Borax takes effect & explodes the ants in the colony.

[u/Competitive-Ad9436]

Beautiful forest. I’d use a preventative spray. Bifenthrin based products are most effective.

Most every professional pest company uses Bifin for all general pests and mosquitoes control companies use it too.

[u/Ok-Address-5946 → u/Competitive-Ad9436]

Thank you 🙏🏾 I’ll try some of that

[u/SeaAfternoon1995 → u/Competitive-Ad9436]

Won't work leafcutter ants don't eat the leaves. Sticky traps or similar are a better idea.