Ants are extremely useful insects because they dig up the ground and carry the seeds of rare plants. They also serve as valuable food for many animals. Nevertheless, they are among the most uninvited visitors in the garden and house. They inject painful poison to defend themselves and are magically attracted to sweets. But ants don't have to become a nuisance, because there are various ways to combat the uninvited tenants in the house and garden in a gentle and environmentally friendly way.
How do I fight ants in an environmentally friendly way?
Ant control can be achieved in an environmentally friendly way by moving with the help of a flower pot, scents such as cinnamon or tea tree oil, water in flower pots or the settlement of natural predators such as birds and insects. An exterminator may need to be hired in the home.
How do you get rid of ants gently?
The first question here is:
- Where can the insects be found?
- Are they individual animals that keep coming back or
- about an entire ant colony?
While individual animals that have strayed into the house or are crawling across the patio are no cause for concern, appropriate control measures should be taken if there is an entire state or an ant trail that runs right through the kitchen.
Get rid of ants in the garden
The little crawlers are often found in the garden where aphids have settled. The ants harvest the sweet honeydew secretions of these pests and aphid colonies before their natural enemies. In this case, it is often enough to fight the aphids to get rid of the ants permanently.
Relocate ants
Alternatively, you can place an empty flower pot over the ant nest. The protected space is comfortable for the animals and they move their nest right under the container. After a few days, you can stick a spade deep under the flower pot, remove the entire ant colony and move it to a place where the little animals won't disturb you.
Strong smells drive away ants
These insects have a very sensitive sense of smell. You can take advantage of this to encourage the uninvited guests to look for a new home using environmentally friendly means. Since, unlike in the house, you can temporarily avoid the unpleasant smell, you can bring out strong-smelling guns in the garden.
The following have proven themselves:
- Wormwood broth
- Stinging nettle manure
- Garlic broth
- Strong smelling perfume.
These smells have such a repellent effect on the little animals that after just a few hours you can usually see the crawlers carrying their brood out of the nest and hastily running away.
Ants prefer a dry place to live
Ants in flower pots or balcony boxes can be easily repelled with water. If plants can tolerate it, simply water them thoroughly for a few days so that the liquid collects in the flower pot. The animals don't like this permanent flooding at all and they quickly run away.
Settle predators
If ants often settle in your garden, you should create a habitat for natural predators. Primarily these are:
- Birds of all kinds
- Centipedes, beetles and spiders.
Fighting ants in the house
The carpenter ants, which are also often found in the garden, and the notorious “termites of the north”, the carpenter ants, primarily settle here.
The following preventative measures will help keep the animals out of the house:
- Always store food in tightly sealed containers.
- Don't leave leftover food lying around.
- Empty the trash can at least once a day, not just in summer.
- Dispose of leftover pet food quickly.
- Check potted plants that have been left outdoors during the summer months and are to be kept indoors over the winter for ant nests before putting them away.
Repel ants gently
First, follow the insects' path back to the nest. If the animals only come to visit and the burrow is outside your apartment, it is enough to interrupt the ant route and keep the insects away with scents.
Ants hate the smell of cinnamon, just sprinkle the ant trail with this spice and you can be quite sure that the little animals will no longer come into the house voluntarily.
But not all animals avoid this fragrance. Alternatively, it's worth trying:
- Dilute tea tree oil or lemon juice. Drop these products onto a cloth and place it in the ant trail.
- Thyme, chervil, juniper, lavender or chili also have a deterrent effect.
However, you should repeat this after a few days as the scent disappears quite quickly.
Also seal all cracks through which the little crawlers could get in with silicone, plaster or acrylic.
Sometimes only a professional can help
However, if a whole colony of ants has settled in the house, you should immediately entrust an exterminator with the removal. The actually useful animals can cause massive damage here, especially if the nest is under the expensive parquet floor or in the roof structure.
Tip
Ant poison works quite reliably, but it should only be used in an absolute emergency. It also contains substances harmful to humans. Such substances do not belong in households where small children or pets live. Even if natural remedies don't work as quickly as the chemical club, with a little patience you can drive away the little crawlers reliably and in an environmentally friendly way.