They come in droves!
They also move very quickly and make taking a picture of them around their entrance very difficult.
Ant hills become obvious when large mounds of dirt suddenly appear as if growing out of the yard. Accidentally step on or run over one, and you’ll see them swarming out of that home to protect it. Unfortunately for the unsuspecting person, this can mean getting ants crawling all over you and in your clothes.
I unknowingly sat on an ant hill when I was a kid and they attacked so swiftly, I was covered by the time I realized I had ants on me. My parents had to take off my clothes to get rid of them. Luckily, this happened in my backyard where no one would see a frightened five-year-old crying her eyes out while getting bitten by dozens of angry ants.
So, what do you do when you discover an ant hill?
If it’s in a secluded location and isn’t bothering anyone, there is the option of just leaving it be. While I’m not a fan of ants, they do eat fleas. This includes eating flea larvae as it is easier to catch.
Other benefits of ants includes:
- aerating the soil and helping with drainage when they dig tunnels
- providing food to animals – I once disturbed an ant hill and my chickens went crazy eating them!
- They’re great indicators of other pests such as aphids
The aphids one got me when I spotted a bunch of ants crawling up my lemon tree (which had had an aphid issue). I researched this to find out that aphids secrete some substance that is called honeydew (not to be confused with the honeydew plant). Ants love this sweet substance and will suck it up into their stomachs that act similarly to bees’ stomachs in that they carry it back to their home this way. On ants, this stomach is called a crop Once back at the nest, the ants share this honeydew with the rest of the hive and, especially, with the queen.
So, ants do have some benefits, but not every ant hill is in a secluded location. Many that I find are in my flower beds and, if I don’t get to those hills fast enough, they will destroy whatever flower they are near.
What do you do then?
Here are some options:
- Disturbing the hill by kicking, mowing, raking it can discourage them from growing the hill upward or even get them to move entirely.
- Diatomaceous Earth is very effective at killing ants without chemicals. You sprinkle it around the hill and into the entrance. However, be careful not to inhale it and you will have to reapply whenever it rains.
- Pouring boiling water is quick, but it doesn’t ensure that it will get all the way down to the queen. The colony may come back.
- Ant baits that contain a poison that they take back to the colony and insecticide sprays work as well.
Ant hills are annoying, but they do have some benefits. However, since that ordeal when I was five, I completely understand the want to get rid of them.
Of course, it’s also fun trying to take pictures and having a chicken photo bomb the whole ordeal.
