When attempting to control ants with chemicals, the most basic options are direct application to the mounds or a broadcast application. With a broadcast application, there is more insecticide used and greater risk to the area ecology so it should be used only where there are extreme numbers of mounds. It must be noted, that to reduce your ant populations, you must kill the queen. So either application of chemical control must meet that objective to be considered a success. In this article we review direct and broad cast applications for ant control.
Mound Treatments:
If you are planning on using the individual mound treatment, you must be sure that the chemical goes deep into the mound to reach the queen. If using Liquid Treatments, drench the mound so that the liquid chemical is able to seep down into center and reach a many ants as possible. All ants in contact with the chemical insecticide should die in less than a day. Be aware that spring and fall are the preferred application times because of the moderate temperatures of 70 – 85 degrees. Hot summers find the ants resting deeper into their mound making it more difficult to reach them. If you must make application during the hot summer months, chose early morning or cooler evening times. Follow all directions on the chemical application of choice to ensure the efficacy of your product. Mixing incorrect ratios might serve to worsen your ant problem instead of curing it.
NCSU.edu recommends the following rates of application for liquid chemical control:
Apply the drench at a rate of approximately 1 gallon per 6 inches of mound diameter. At this rate, for example, a mound measuring 12 inches across would receive 2 gallons of insecticide drench. The amount of drench applied is more important than the concentration of insecticide in the drench. Thoroughly wet the ground to a distance of about 2 feet around the mound. Sometimes the drench does not kill all fire ants in a treated colony. The surviving ants will construct small mounds within 10 to 15 feet of the parent colony. Several days after the application, search the area around the treated colony for new mounds and treat them with the insecticide drench. Keep children and pets away from the treated area until it is dry (or as designated on the pesticide label).
If you chose to use Ant Baits for your mound treatments be aware that the baiting product may be compromised by exposure to very hot and humid conditions in a relatively short amount of time. Consider using baits in spring time before weather conditions are extreme. Also, you can put ‘food’ out near suspected ant foraging sites to gauge where your bait would be best utilized. Then sprinkle bait around the mounds according to label directions. An application of liquid chemical maybe used 5-7 days after baiting application to make sure all ants are effectively controlled.
Broadcast Applicatons:
If you have reached the conclusion that a broadcast application of chemical is your best option to control your ant problem, consider weather conditions before application. Most broadcast chemicals will need water to be applied for them to be effective. Apply the treatment directly before a rain is forecast and save yourself some work. Consider using broadcast applications during a spring and fall rotation to keep your ant problem to a manageable threshold.
Click HERE for a full listing of appropriate chemicals for ant control.
Showing posts with label ants. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ants. Show all posts
Monday, March 5, 2012
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Facts About Ants
Ant Facts
More than 10,000 species may exist worldwide. Approximately 570 species occur in the United States and of these, fewer than 30 species may regularly infest homes and other buildings with only ten species considered major pests. Ants have succeeded in replacing other types of structural pests as the number one pest in homes in many parts of the United States. In Texas, the imported fire ant has been deemed by pest control companies as the number one structural pest. In the Pacific Northwest, carpenter ants are responsible for most homeowner calls to pest control operators.
All ant species member live in colonies with one to many queens, immature, numerous sterile female workers and occasionally males. The workers are wingless and characterized by elbowed antennae and the constricted first one or two segments of the abdomen.
Ants can be detrimental to human health; their presence under certain situations can pose a serious human health risk. In hospitals, health care facilities, food processing plants, food packaging plants and food preparation areas of various structures, the presence of ants should not be tolerated because of potential for disease transmission.
Ants frequently are annoying and sometimes dangerous because of their bites and or stings. Not all ants sting. In many ants, the sting has practically disappeared, but venom may be injected into a wound made from a bite. Many ants produce a toxin secreted by glands in the head which is deposited in the bite. The substance is called formic acid and is the source of the scientific name of the ants, Formicidae.
Ants commonly attack livestock. Workers of harvester and fire ants have been reported attacking and killing young pigs. There are also reports of fire ants attacking and killing chicks and newborn calves. Some species of the big-head ant are intermediate hosts of various poultry tapeworms.
Ants can damage crops and ornamental plants. The red imported fire ant is known to remove seeds from seed beds and feed on the seeds of corn, peanuts and beans. Workers of the red imported fire ant will chew on the roots, stems and leaves of plants. In some cases, seedlings are girdled and die.
Ants can spoil range land for grazing by building mounds and clearing sites for their nests. Harvester ants clear large areas of all vegetation about their nest structure. These ants have a potent sting which may further discourage grazing about their nests, Fire ants pose a special problem to harvest operations in hay fields as their large, hardened mounds are known to break harvesting equipment.
Enjoyment of parks and recreational areas where the fire ant is prevalent is often spoiled. Fire ants also show a fascination for electricity and have many reports of damage to electrical equipment. Carpenter ant workers will strip the insulation from cables, causing them to short.
Shade trees are damaged by Carpenter ants. Telephone poles are also not immune to ant attack.
Carpenter ants are the major group of ants that cause damage to wooden structures. These ants tunnel through wood but do not consume it for food as is the case with termites.
More than 10,000 species may exist worldwide. Approximately 570 species occur in the United States and of these, fewer than 30 species may regularly infest homes and other buildings with only ten species considered major pests. Ants have succeeded in replacing other types of structural pests as the number one pest in homes in many parts of the United States. In Texas, the imported fire ant has been deemed by pest control companies as the number one structural pest. In the Pacific Northwest, carpenter ants are responsible for most homeowner calls to pest control operators.
All ant species member live in colonies with one to many queens, immature, numerous sterile female workers and occasionally males. The workers are wingless and characterized by elbowed antennae and the constricted first one or two segments of the abdomen.
Ants can be detrimental to human health; their presence under certain situations can pose a serious human health risk. In hospitals, health care facilities, food processing plants, food packaging plants and food preparation areas of various structures, the presence of ants should not be tolerated because of potential for disease transmission.
Ants frequently are annoying and sometimes dangerous because of their bites and or stings. Not all ants sting. In many ants, the sting has practically disappeared, but venom may be injected into a wound made from a bite. Many ants produce a toxin secreted by glands in the head which is deposited in the bite. The substance is called formic acid and is the source of the scientific name of the ants, Formicidae.
Ants commonly attack livestock. Workers of harvester and fire ants have been reported attacking and killing young pigs. There are also reports of fire ants attacking and killing chicks and newborn calves. Some species of the big-head ant are intermediate hosts of various poultry tapeworms.
Ants can damage crops and ornamental plants. The red imported fire ant is known to remove seeds from seed beds and feed on the seeds of corn, peanuts and beans. Workers of the red imported fire ant will chew on the roots, stems and leaves of plants. In some cases, seedlings are girdled and die.
Ants can spoil range land for grazing by building mounds and clearing sites for their nests. Harvester ants clear large areas of all vegetation about their nest structure. These ants have a potent sting which may further discourage grazing about their nests, Fire ants pose a special problem to harvest operations in hay fields as their large, hardened mounds are known to break harvesting equipment.
Enjoyment of parks and recreational areas where the fire ant is prevalent is often spoiled. Fire ants also show a fascination for electricity and have many reports of damage to electrical equipment. Carpenter ant workers will strip the insulation from cables, causing them to short.
Shade trees are damaged by Carpenter ants. Telephone poles are also not immune to ant attack.
Carpenter ants are the major group of ants that cause damage to wooden structures. These ants tunnel through wood but do not consume it for food as is the case with termites.
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