Fire ant control is a necessity any time of the year. Summer usually brings an increase in the biting little buggers. Ants don’t tend to bother anyone in the far back corner of the yard, but when the mounds move closer to the house it’s an issue. Children can’t run through the yard without looking down at their feet. Pets can’t enjoy the yard without something nipping at them. In this article, we’re sharing fire ant control methods you need this summer.

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What Doesn’t Work As Fire Ant Control

To start, let’s point out some ways that don’t work efficiently as fire ant control. This article from the Grumpy Gardner names plenty of methods that just didn’t pan out. With a little bit of sass, he knocks out some of the organic control method. According to the article, effective control methods kill the ant and the queen, preventing new mounds. Faulty methods include grits, diatomaceous earth, boiling water, orange peels, club soda and diesel fuel or gasoline. Yes, we chuckled on the inside.

Organic Fire Ant Control Methods That Work

Fire ants can live through extremely harsh weather. Thanks to tiny holes reaching done their bodies, called spiracles, fire ants can hold their breath. What’s more, fire ants can swim using movements like a tiny dog paddle. In flood ridden areas, fire ants are known to ball together around the queen. They create a floating fire ant raft to carry their queen to safety. Ants are not only hardy, but resourceful.

Fire ant control must also be the same. Typically, organic methods the loose their potency with time, heat, or rain. The possibility of the control method actually reaching the queen is unlikely. As long as the queen survives, the nest can rebuild or move. Slow release methods work effectively in reaching the queen. Granule release methods can resist the rain long enough to kill the queens in the nest, along with the surrounding workers. Spreading the granules throughout the yard evenly will help cover the mound you don’t see as well as trouble spots.

Mound Drenches

Mound drenches are a control method that involves pouring a solution on the mound itself. The drench saturates the mound, hopefully reaching the queen. The problem with drenches is that you may not be using them correctly or enough of the solution for it to work. In Florida, summer rains can minimize the potency if drench before rainfall. If the solution doesn’t reach the queen, the mound with pop up somewhere else.

Fire Ant Baits

Organic baits used for fire ant control include an active ingredient call spinosad. Spinosad is the ingredient responsible for the effectiveness of organic fire ant control. When on the baits, workers transport the spinosad back to the queen for her to ingest. Baits can be granule or solid, based on your preference. Using both mound drenches and baits can create an effective fire ant control. However, a simpler solution is using a slow release granule.

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