There do seem to be a lot of ants this year. We had some in the house, some in the trim outside, probably carpenter ants, and a potted plant infested with an ant nest. UGH!!!

Wow - I thought I was the only one with ant issues - they are terrible in my garden (raised beds) they are on the beans, the eggplant, the squash. I do think that they eat nasty eggs on the squash plants, I don't seem to get many SVBs, but they are farming aphids on the huckleberries... :(

I'm going to try your recipe and see if it works! Thank you! Glad to hear they are leaving the eggplant alone...

Cindy

this is the worst year for ants i have ever seen...

I had the ants in my veg garden last year. I sprinkled hot pepper flakes on top of the soil. It doesn't look that pretty, but it kept the ants at bay. Try that method! It really worked! I use an ant moat for my humming bird feeder, that it a homemade jobber.

I've never ever had problems w/ Ants but like you guys...this year is nuts. I heard some where that you can sprinkle grits around the ant hill and they will eat it, it will expland, and they will die. Well, my ants are Southern....and they like GRITS. They didn't die...they are just happier and now are standing at the back door every morning w/ itty bitty picket signs that say "where's the ham and red eye gravy????"

Last evening I was tilling part of the garden and took great pleasure in tilling their hill. If nothing else, maybe they will keep them busy rebuilding and not keep adding on more hills!!!

Funny, I thought it was just my soil. Well, they don't seem to be causing any problems, so I plan to leave them alone. I imagine it must be the strange weather that's drawing them out, though I don't see the connection. Maybe they just emerged before their predators this year because of the cold spring followed by a couple of hot spells.

I no longer have an ant problem at all in the garden. The borax and sugar method also works great on Stink Bugs in the straw. I just take the cotton balls out of the garden during the day so bees and beneficials don't get to the borax.

I for one welcome our future ant overlords...

P.S. I too am noticing an increased level of ant activity

> "I for one welcome our future ant overlords... "

If you have NetFlix, get the 50s movie 'Them', starring James Arness. It is well done because they used the real way ants act, not giving them any other characteristics that ants don't have.

Sue

I always have a lot of desert fire ants, in and outside. My advice is to get boric acid and mix it with brown sugar. Just a tiny, tiny bit in a small spot, I usually put it outside the garden on a sidewalk or walkway, will literally decimate the entire population in one or two days. I do the same in the house.
If they seem to be a type that prefers protein, you can try canned cat food or peanut butter.
Use more of the bait and less boric acid, about 3 or 4-1. The boric acid is very safe around pets and kids. It's used as an eye and ear wash.
For on my veggies, I use diamecteous earth as a dust when needed for the ant farming the aphids.