Grow Your Own Magazine

spent loads of time digging my new plot over the weekend and i'm finally making some headway...2 beds constructed (quite a lot to go!). seem to be completely infested with red ants though. apart from the fact they keep biting me are they going to cause me any probs and do i need to do anything to get rid of them? Never grown anything before so not sure which insects are really bad!

hello

we had a lot of red ants and we sprinkled ground coffee all around and they didnt come back so give it a try.

hi jojo, I'll be very interested in Grapes' responses to your question as every paving slab in my garden seems to house an ant nest, usually red, and I'm always wondering if overall they are A Good Thing (capturing aphids for example) or A Bad Thing... They are certainly very efficient - lift a slab, total mayhem seems to result but within two minutes every egg has been salvaged and there's hardly an ant to be seen! I'm more concerned by you saying that they "keep biting you" as one red ant bite is more than enough for me... the effect lasts (on me at least) over a week and as well as being incredibly itchy and inflamed can turn septic and nasty. One lesson I've learned the hard way is never to take off a gardening glove and put on the soil even momentarily whilst doing something else because red ants are very exploratory and a bite on the wrist is Trouble. Perhaps that experience alone is enough to warrant me getting rid of them but I try not to be too vengeful!

I'll try hawthorn's coffee grounds recipe though and perhaps reduce the population... is that freshly ground coffee, H, or the sludge after making coffee? - i.e. who gets to drink the coffee, me or the ants?

If it's any consolation jojo, I've never found ants much trouble in any area that's regularly cultivated - you've probably encountered more than your fair share if the ground was previously not dug... now they'll probably move of their own accord to quieter areas.

bb

Evening peeps - RED ANTS - good or bad......?

Tho' I don't see them doing damage at the Hill in their own right, they do that farming aphid thing (who benefits there......?)

NOT ME an that is for sure....) SO if you Stir Up the nests every now and again, goodie birdies will doff their metaphorical caps to you as they enjoy their gourmet meal.....

__________________
Hazel
www.hazelandjanesallotment.blogspot.com
update Sat 15/11/2008......there's gold in them thar...compost bins!......

fresh coffee not the sludge it worked a treat

Red ants don't capture aphids, they farm them - there is a difference. Any ants farm aphids, they stick them on to your precious vegetable plants where the aphids suck the goodness from your plants, turn it into honeydew which is eaten by the ants. Ants don't harm plants direct (that is they don't eat them) but they do tunnel underneath the roots, loosening them and causing plants to wilt and possibly die, they do transfer aphids from one plant to another (with attendant disease problems). and they do bite if you disturb them. They don't like being disturbed, so regular cultivation helps and the birds love the eggs etc that are brought to the surface. They don't like being too wet either, so watering heavily will help to move them (beware, boiling water does kill ants and nests, but it also kills whatever else it touches like your plants or patch of lawn!!). We have a real ant problem here in Suffolk as the soil is generally light and suits them, but with constant cultivation I've not found them a real problem on the lottie.

Fascinating, many thanks rustylady and H-on-the-H, that decides it and I’ll actively discourage them in future (probably best solution would be to remove the slabs which offer too secure overhead housing as well as other difficulties but that’s a slightly larger undertaking…). Meantime disturbance and insecurity seem to be one line of attack (including H’s coffee tip, for which thanks) so expect a few more stressed-out ants. I certainly won’t miss the occasional bite. Many thanks.

bb

thanks everyone for your helpful replies. Thought i'd disturbed all the ants so much that they'd just upped and left for quieter spots and an easier life...no such luck i've just uncovered a huge nest quite deep under the area i'm creating a new bed. just shows you doesn't it there's never an easy option!