Ants maintain the balance in nature. They feed on predators and thus keep the garden clean. At the same time, they loosen and fertilize the soil. However, if the ant colony lives in the lawn, this has some disadvantages. They raise mounds of earth and partially destroy the grass. But you don't have to go straight to the chemical club. There are a number of natural home remedies to get rid of ants in your lawn.
ant species
Some species of ants, including the most common black garden ant (Lasius niger), feel at home in our gardens. And the yellow garden ant (Lasius flavus) also prefers to build its nests in the lawn. But even if the animals have many positive qualities and are active as effective pest controllers in the home garden, they can sometimes become a nuisance. Especially when the grasses are affected by the building of their nests. The yellow garden ant can produce mounds of earth in the meadow up to the size of a molehill. About 500 workers live in such an ant colony, in individual cases there can be significantly more.
combat
Both fighting and expelling an ant colony from the lawn is difficult because of the way the animals live and reproduce. Like bees, these insects live in a state where not every single ant reproduces, only the queen reproduces by laying eggs. The rest of the population consists of workers who take care of building the nest, caring for the eggs and finding food. To fight the ant colony, the queen must be killed or forced to move.
tip: The yellow garden ant breeds a certain type of lice underground, from whose honeydew the animals feed. As a result, the workers do not leave the nest very often to forage and are therefore difficult to bait.
baking soda/baking soda
One of the most popular home remedies for ants is baking soda. However, since baking soda is not one of the insects' natural food sources, it must be mixed with a suitable attractant such as sugar. The mixture is then placed near the ant hill. The workers eat not only the sugar, but also the baking powder. They bring both into the nest, where they are fed to the other members and the queen. It usually doesn't take long for the ants to die. Since the composition of baking soda has changed in recent years, it is less effective. Experts advise using baking soda instead.
- powdered sugar
- baking soda
- mix in a ratio of 1 + 1
coffee grounds
Coffee grounds scattered on the ant nests are carried inside the nest by the workers. There the insects eat it and thus also absorb the caffeine in the coffee powder. Caffeine is fatal to both the adults and their offspring. The coffee grounds are even more popular if they have been mixed with a little powdered sugar.
cornmeal
For gardens with lots of children or pets, cornmeal is a particularly ingenious weapon to control an ant population. Cornmeal is not inherently toxic to humans or pets. However, an ant does not tolerate cornmeal and dies after eating it.
sweetener sucralose
The sweetener sucralose is also harmless to children and pets. It is therefore ideal for lawns where small children spend time (such as after-school care centers, kindergartens and schools). You simply sprinkle the sweetener on the anthill and the insects die shortly after ingestion. It may be necessary to sprinkle some sweetener again after a few days.
Drive away by smell
If you don't want to kill the ant colony in your lawn, you can motivate the hymenoptera to move. There are also natural home remedies for this alternative. Since ants use smells as a guide, they are very sensitive to strong aromas. If you repeatedly spray the ant nests with strong scents, in the best case scenario the whole colony will move out because it can no longer orientate itself under these conditions.
vinegar
Placing bowls filled with vinegar around the anthill is too much of a good thing for the ants' sensitive olfactory organs. Refill the bowls regularly. Vinegar has a very penetrating, pungent smell. Vinegar is a natural home remedy that does not harm the environment in small amounts.
tip: Vinegar is an acid. Contact with the eyes and mucous membranes can cause irritation. That's why you shouldn't use vinegar if there are pets, small children or sensitive people in the garden.
Mediterranean herbs
Herbs are also effective home remedies for ants. They contain strong scents that drive away the smell-sensitive animals. You can plant the plants in the meadow near the colony or spread the leaves and stems around the ant nest. The following plants are particularly suitable:
- anise
- Citronella (lemongrass or lemongrass)
- lavender
- marjoram
- peppermint
- sage
- thyme
- lemon balm
thyme
Essential Oils
The corresponding essential oils of the plants mentioned above are even more effective. When using oils, add a few drops to a spray bottle of water. So that the oil mixes better with the water, it makes sense to add a little washing-up liquid. After shaking, spray the ant nest in the meadow with the mixture for several days in a row. The essential oils are available in many drugstores, health food stores or pharmacies.
- Citronella oil (lemongrass or lemongrass)
- garlic oil
- lavender oil
- marjoram oil
- neem oil
- peppermint oil
- sage oil
- thyme oil
- cinnamon oil
- lemon balm oil
- lemon oil
Perfume
If you still have an old, cheap perfume at home, you can put a few drops of it on the ant's nest in the garden. The perfume masks the insects' scent trails, forcing them to undress in order to continue to orientate themselves in the area.
Nettle manure
Anyone who has ever prepared liquid manure knows how intense it smells. So if you want to drive unwanted guests out of your lawn and at the same time do something good for the plants in the lawn, you can use nettle manure. The completely natural home remedy, which is otherwise used to fertilize the garden, deters the ants with the smell, so that they leave their burrow voluntarily at best.
- about 500 g fresh nettles
- finely chopped leaves and stems
- 10 liters of water
- mix well
Cover and leave the jar with the mixture for about a week. Then pour the brew over the nest. This process may be necessary several times.
Vermouth manure
Hymenoptera can also be driven out of the meadow or lawn with wormwood. To do this, prepare a homemade manure made from dried or fresh wormwood and pour it over the ant nest.
- about 300 g fresh vermouth, finely chopped
- alternatively 30 g dried wormwood herb
- 10 liters of water
Place a wooden board or an airtight lid on the jar and let the mixture sit outside in a sunny, sheltered spot until bubbles stop forming. Then strain out the solids and pour the brew over the ants' nest with the watering can (fine shower attachment) for several days in a row.
relocate ants
In general, of course, the question arises as to where the ants should be driven. Just a few meters further? In the neighboring garden? If the insects in your lawn, which are actually very useful, are slowly becoming a nuisance and cannot be fought or driven away, you should simply relocate the ant colony. For this you need:
- plant pot
- wood wool
Place the flower pot filled with wood shavings upside down on the ant hill in the garden and wait. After a few days, the ants begin to move their nest into the flower pot. Once the pupae are in the new home, pick up the pot with a shovel and relocate the ant colony. To prevent the animals from returning to their old nest, the new location should be at least 30 meters away.
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