| Ants are considered beneficial in the garden. They actually recycle all kinds of waste, including dead insects and plant debris. However, if they are too close to the patio, play area or your backdoor, here's how you can control them: Use a broadcast bait of 1-cup sugar, 4 teaspoons of boric acid and 24 ounces of water in a glass jar. Close the jar tightly and shake the mixture thoroughly until all the crystals dissolve. Pour 1 cup of this mixture into a smaller jar filled partially with cotton balls. Screw the lid back on, seal around the lid with weatherproof tape and punch a few small holes in the center of the lid. Draw a skull and crossbones on the jar as an extra precaution for passers-by and keep pets and children away from the jars! Put one of these near the entrance to each mound. The ants will get into the jar to eat the sugar and return to the nest and pass it on to the rest of the colony. If you start to see a lot of dead ants next to the jar, the solution is too strong. Adjust it accordingly so ants don't die before sharing the food with others in the colony (Effective on all types of ants). |
