How to deal with ants without killing plants?

[BecauseImWorthIt]

I have some ant spray, which I use on the patio, but today I noticed a line of ants (Tom and Jerry style) running up and down my rather tall Ceanothus.

The spray I have is clearly dangerous to use on plants and the soil, as there are warnings about contamination. So how do I get rid of these ants without doing any harm to my garden?

I also suspect that we might have a very large colony under our lawn - what was a flat, levelled lawn when it was re-turfed last year is now all bumpy and sunken in places

[Mumwhensdinnerready]

Why would you want to get rid of them? Unless they threaten to come indoors I would leave them alone.

[pointydog]

yeah, I think they're fine as long as they don't come indoors. But you can deal with them without worrying about plants if they do come indoors.

[BecauseImWorthIt]

Because I hate the little feckers!

And, more worryingly, because I think they are colonising under my lawn and undoing all the expensive good work I have been doing on it.

And they do come inside and have been burrowing in/eating our woodwork.

Is that enough reasons for you?!

[pointydog]

eating your woodwork?! what sort of ants are they

when I had ants indoors they just made big lines towards sugary foods.

I wasn't aware they did any real damage in teh garden but you make it sound as if your whole lawn is heaving

[BecauseImWorthIt]

Well, if it takes that kind of visual image before anyone will help me, yes, I have mountains and valleys in my lawn now!!!

[pointydog]

we used Ant Killing Powder indoors. Worked a treat. Not sure how it is with plants, though.

It could be very educational for your dc, you know, having a whole ant housein your garden

[BecauseImWorthIt]

Don't even think about it. Somebody bought one of them an ant colony kit for a birthday once. It went straight to the charity shop.

I hate them. Did I mention that?

I have a very effective spray for around the patio/french doors, but not for on the plants.

[thell]

Allegedly, they hate mint. I've read advice about planting it to deter them. I don't have much experience to back this up - except that last summer I noticed some ants from out the front of our house were marching through a teeny gap by the front door and along the hall! So I mopped the floor with a solution including Peppermint Essential Oil a few times in quick succession and they didn't come back.

They are very destructive creatures - my parents kept getting them in the house, and eventually they discovered they had been burrowing through the mortar behind their skirting boards. They are indeed little feckers.

[Cathpot]

There is a sort of ant trap thing which I think contains a poison which they take back to the nest. I used it one year and seemed to work- safer than spray as it is contained in a plastic box with only a small entry hole for ants.

They arent usually too much trouble but they can start 'farming' aphids, so they protect the aphids from natural predators like ladybirds and in turn drink the excess sap they produce from their bums. Had this happen once to an apple sapling, was heaving with both species. Not sure if this is all ant or a particular type.

[MarmadukeScarlet]

You can buy environmental/biological controls for ants. From the company that make supply nematodes for killing slugs - nemaslug?

better for the environment than chemicals.

I will be getting some this year as my garden is overrun with yellow field ants, far more interesting than common black or red but very aggressive with painful bites.

My paddocks also have them, but I'm not so bothered about them.

[Cathpot]

Good point marmaduke, its Green Gardener I think.

[Linnet]

Nippon is what I was told to buy to get rid of ants. I used it last year but i think we put it out to late, must put the little box out tomorrow, I think it's the same thing that Cathpot mentions.

We have ants inside our front wall, they come out from under the living room window frame. I worry about how big their nest is inside our wall. We also have other nests of ants around the fence but they don't bother me so much as htey are further from the house.