One thing I am often intrigued by when I stroll through garden centers is the range of products for sale that are designed to kill garden ants. I find this strange because I rarely find them to be a problem worth solving, despite the fact that I seem to have them everywhere in my garden.
Garden ants will often serve the role of pollinators when they are busy searching for nectar. (peakpx.com)
Let me start this article by being very specific with regard to species. The type of ant I am talking about here is the "black garden ant" or "common black ant." I am not talking about fire ants or carpenter ants.
An argument for ants
In all my years of gardening, I have always had ants in all of my gardens, and have almost never needed to kill them, nor have I ever witnessed them causing damage to my plants. Based on my experience, I consider trying to control garden ant populations a pointless waste of time and money.
These little guys are just trying to make a living scavenging for food in your garden. Yes, they crawl up your arm and legs sometimes. Yes, they crawl into your coffee mug sometimes. That's no reason to resort to chemical warfare. These little guys do not sting, and for the most part are beneficial - killing or harassing pests and doing some accidental pollinating as they search for sources of nectar.
Ants just love the sweet taste of aphid secretions. (peakpx.com)
Don't they help aphids?
Yes, and this is the only place where they can be a problem. Ants collect a secretion from aphids that they find sweet (sounds gross, but we've been doing that with cows for years...). They are so fond of this stuff that they run off anything that comes near the aphids - so the aphids proliferate and become a problem as they destroy your foliage and grow in number. So are ants the real problem? No. Aphids are the problem. They are the herbivores. Take away the aphids and the ants will go back to work pollinating, moving soil around and making tiny tunnels in your soil to assist your plant roots in their constant search for water and nutrients.
Sometimes ants get a little too covetous of their aphid colonies. (via pixabay.com)
How do I kill aphids?
Soap spray (one tablespoon of dish soap to 1 gallon of water) will do a good number on aphids. If this approach lacks your desired level of vengeance, try a pyrethrin-based insecticide spray (derived from chrysanthemums) and rain down death on their tiny little heads to your heart's content, then sleep like a baby, safe and secure in the knowledge that you have saved the ants from their addiction to the irresistibly tasty secretions of aphids.
What if they make a nest in my garden?
A nest can be a problem if it is located in a space where you intend to grow vegetables. I’m not sure why, but I’ve found that an ant nest can cause some plants to grow very poorly, and the effect is roughly over a 2’-3’ radius. If you are a better person than me, you can simply let the ants have that space and be Zen about the whole thing. If, on the other hand, you want them gone, one option is to repeatedly kick the nest in; they will get the point and move elsewhere eventually. Another option is to repeatedly flood the nest with a garden hose, and maybe they will move somewhere else. If either of these options are still not to your liking, and you really want the ants gone - then use the solution offered for fire ants below.
What about the nasty ants?
2021 was the first year that fire ants showed up in my garden. These ants do all kinds of typical harmless ant things and they are beneficial in many of the ways that other ant are.. but they sting… man do they sting. They are also aggressive. Whilst many types of ants run away when you mess up their nests – fire ants go into crazy mode and they attack. If you are committed to a “live and let live” ethos – then sure – figure out a way to live with them – your garden will be fine, because like most ants, they do more good than bad. On the other hand – if you dread that telltale sensation of something running up you ankles – or if you have young children in the garden and don’t want to scar them for life… then chemicals are your friend. A 50/50 combination of borax and sugar placed for easy access near a nest will poison an entire ant colony. About a tablespoonful or two is all that’s needed – just present it in a way that is rainproof (make a roof of some kind) near the colony. There are many sources on the internet suggesting boiling water, but given the depth of some colonies, a ridiculous amount of boiling water would be needed to actually wipe them out. A delicious smorgasbord of borax and sugar, by contrast, will find it’s way to every living ant soul. This solution isn’t for everyone given its ruthlessness, but it does solve the problem.
Final thoughts
This year, when you begin to go about your annual ritual of killing garden ants, take a moment to pause and consider whether the ants are doing anything wrong. If you see aphids, starve the ants of their beloved crack-cocaine aphid juice, and get them back to the more noble pursuits in your garden. Remember, they outnumber us by over a million to one. Try to be nice. It’s possible that some day they will rule the world and be our overlords.
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