Natural Methods of Ant Extermination
Do you like to exterminate the ants crawling all over your place
without having to call the pest control company? If you have the time
and you have knowledge of using simple tools then you just might be up
for the task. These methods are relatively low cost and effective you
can be ant free for years and save a lot of money too.
One of the methods you can try is hunting the ant colony as a real
professional pest control agent does. The only difference this time is
that you will be using boiling water instead of insecticide. The
advantage of using this method is that they do not expose you to toxic
chemicals and costs almost nothing compared to pesticide. Sometimes,
when ants sense flooding in their colonies, they form a ball or raft
like structure to float which is why you must use boiling water so the
water will kill the ants upon contact.
The only problem at hand now is to know where to pour the boiling
water. By now, you must have noticed that ants move in single file.
However, if you think they are following each other, you are terribly
mistaken. Ants do not follow each other on purpose but they follow a
scented path left by the ant that first found the food. Ants leave
pheromone residue in a trail when they forage for food. This trail
guides the scout ant back to the colony and gives the worker ants
directions to the food without the scout guiding them back. So if you
follow where the trail leads, you will get either to a nest or to a food
source. When you are able to pinpoint where the nests are, you can now
drill holes near the colony and pour the boiling water accordingly.
If you do not like drilling holes or if you think the boiling water is
too brutal, you can try baiting. Baiting is placing food that is toxic
to ants near but not directly on an ant trail. Baiting is very effective
when the bait is placed near the nest. As for the bait, you can use
cornmeal, wheat or rice flour among the few. The ants will eat them and
carry them back to their nests. However, the ants cannot digest these
foods so they will eventually die and since they brought the bait in
their nest, this will produce a chain reaction that can possibly kill
the whole nest or at least reduce them greatly. Just do not forget to
vary the type of bait occasionally, as ants will recognize over time
that the bait is not good for them. Switching between different baits
with different odors will increase the effectiveness of baiting
significantly and lowers the chances of ants not taking the bait.
Though these methods wipe out most of the colony, there is a huge chance
that the ants will rebuild. It may take years but these creatures are
very hardy and persistent they will keep coming back. When natural
methods no longer seem effective, it would be wise to seek professional
help. |
