If you live in the southern part of the United States you are probably well-known with Fire Ants. It is very likely you have been walking on your lawn or in your garden and suddenly found your foot or leg on fire from these pesky insects because you have unknowingly wandered into their domain. It seems their mounds can spring up everywhere and out of nowhere. Though you can use commercially ready chemical pesticides to rid your property of these fiery biters there are also some more organic methods you can try to get rid of fire ants.
While there are four species of fire ants that are native to North America and have natural predators to keep the populations down, there is an additional one collection which was imported and does not. The imported fire ants were accidentally imported from Brazil sometime in the 1930s and have spread rapidly throughout the southern parts of the United States. It is believed they hitched a ride in infested soil that was used as ballast on cargo ships. Experts believe these ships put into port in either Mobile, Alabama or Pensacola, Florida. They are not as much of a question in Brazil as they have more natural predators in their homeland, but in the Us they have spread like wildfire. They do have some natural predators in North America such as lizards, birds, other insects and armadillos. Fire ants prefer sunny locations so mounds will often spring up in the middle of lawns but they can also spring up elsewhere.
Natural Ant Killer Corn Meal
Generally, I prefer to find a natural or organic clarification to the issues with which I deal. As mentioned, I could nothing else but find a chemical insecticide to deal with these miniature buggers but I knew there had to be a natural solution. The question with using chemical insecticides is that they are often not only harmful to insects but to mammals as well. So the five natural methods I've found to get rid of fire ants are:
- Orange Oil. Orange oil is extracted from the peels of oranges and contains a chemical called d-limonene which is deadly to fire ants and many other insects. It eats through their exoskeleton and causes them to dry out. You can buy orange oil in many gardening centers or nurseries. Just dilute 1/4 cup of orange oil in a gallon of water and add a dash of dish liquid. The dish liquid helps the clarification to stick. Some propose a tablespoon of molasses as well but it is not necessary. Once you have your concoction, spray the entire gallon over the mound using a garden sprayer. Be very meticulous not to disturb the mound as that may allow some laborer ants to fly the mound and begin a mound elsewhere.
- Corn Meal. You could sprinkle corn meal colse to the mound. The ants will eat the corn meal and it will improve in their stomach and kill them.
- Diatomaceous Earth. This is also known as De. It can be found in most feed stores. Just sprinkle De on and colse to the mound. De is made from tiny fossilized algae and water plants. It is a very fine powder and can cause damage to your lungs so a mask should be worn when spreading it. It works by nothing else but cutting the bodies of the insects and killing them and can also cause cuts in your lungs, hence the mask. It is effective against a estimate of insects along with fleas. We put it on our dogs when they appear to have a flea infestation. One question with De and fire ant operate is the ants sometimes detect it and just avoid contact.
- Boric Acid. Just mix equal parts of boric acid, sugar and flour and sprinkle colse to the mound. The ants will eat the composition and take some back to their queen affecting the entire colony. Within a combine of days they should all be miniature brown balls on the ground.
- Aspartame. Aspartame is not only bad for humans but deadly for ants as well. Just sprinkle aspartame colse to the mound and the workers will take the sweet satisfaction into their mounds as food. As they just love sugary substances, the queen and the rest of the inhabitants will devour the aspartame and die.
So if you see a bunch of fire ant mounds on your property don't run out and buy a chemical insecticide which may be harmful to you and your pets. Give one of these tried and true natural methods a try and you will quickly get rid of those fiery pests.
Get Rid of Fire Ants - 5 Natural Methods to stop These Fiery Biters