Ants generally have advantages for your garden. However, the animals can be a nuisance in the lettuce patch. Especially if there are a lot of ants in the bed, you should definitely react to the ant infestation. Use these tips..
How do I remove ants from the lettuce bed?
Ants in the lettuce bed can undermine roots and promote aphid infestation. To get rid of them, you can flood or relocate ant nests and use natural deterrents such as herbs, cinnamon or vinegar. You can fight aphids with a soft soap solution and neem oil.
Are ants in lettuce beds harmful?
Ants are beneficial insects, but they bringindirect problems with them. As with many other things, in this case too, quantity matters. So a few ants in the lettuce bed are not a problem. An entire ant nest will cause roots in the bed to be undermined. Then plants lose their support and no longer receive enough nutrients. Ant trails on the leaves of lettuce plants are also problematic. Ants love aphids and contribute to the colonization of plants with aphids.
How do I remove an ant nest from the lettuce bed?
You can remove an ant nest in the lettuce bed byfloodingorrelocate the animals When flooding, pour water or plant manure directly onto the ant nest several times. This way you can ensure that the animals run away. If you want to relocate the ant nest, follow these steps:
- Fill a large clay pot with wood shavings.
- Put the pot upside down over the nest.
- Cover the drain hole with stone.
- Allow ants to move in over the course of a week.
- After a week, slide a spade under the pot.
- Put the ant colony in the pot in a new location.
How do I keep ants away from the lettuce bed?
You can useHerbs and other natural home remedies in the salad bed that smell unpleasant to ants. The following herbal plants have a deterrent effect:
- Thyme
- Wormwood
- Lavender
- Marjoram
Substances such as cinnamon, lemon peel, coffee or vinegar as well as plant manure also spread an unpleasant smell for ants. You can spray vinegar in raised beds without any concerns. With this type of ant control you do not spread any harmful substances in the vegetable patch.
How do I get rid of aphids and ants in the lettuce bed?
If the ants in the lettuce bed indicate an aphid infestation, you must usesoft soap solution. A signal of aphid infestation is the sticky residue that the lice usually leave behind on the leaves of plants. If you get rid of the aphids, the ants will disappear too. How to proceed:
- Spray plants with a strong jet of water.
- Make a solution with water, soft soap and a little neem oil.
- Spray plants.
You should repeat the treatment with the soft soap solution several times. The aphids should be gone after three weeks at the latest.
How do I avoid an influx of ants in the lettuce bed in the future?
Stop the ant trails with the help of lime. The substance has a basic pH value and neutralizes formic acid. For this reason, the ants do not enter areas that have been sprinkled with dusty lime.
Tip
Baking soda as a last resort against ants in the salad bed
Some gardeners also use baking soda against ants. However, this remedy is fatal to ants. Since you only catch a limited number of animals with the powder, you don't necessarily avoid further influx of ants in the lettuce bed.
