Help the development of the site, sharing the article with friends!
Ants sometimes appear out of nowhere. They walk across the garden or even get into our home. Fighting them is a challenge. Because they are small, numerous and also constantly on the move. Since nobody wants to contaminate their private realm with chemicals, natural home remedies are in demand. Cinnamon is said to drive away ants with its scent. Many testimonials testify to this effect. But how is this spice used most effectively?
Cinnamon against ants
Most people just love the smell of cinnamon. Ants do not share this preference. Their reaction suggests that they find the scent repulsive. Because they consistently avoid places where he can be heard. And since these insects have a keen sense of smell, they sniff out even the smallest amounts of it.
The scent also seems to mess up her sense of direction. This is one of the reasons why they can no longer pursue their busy occupations according to plan and are looking for another place of activity. Fighting ants with cinnamon doesn't involve any victims. It neither harms their health nor kills them.
Other benefits of cinnamon
The high effectiveness of the spice is reason enough to fight these annoying insects with it. But it also offers other convincing advantages:
- he works fast and reliable
- other animals in the garden are not harmed
- is also not dangerous for pets
- it is cheap to buy
- may be used any number of times
place cinnamon
The spice is suitable for use in the garden as well as for closed rooms. Since ant animals are buzzing around almost everywhere, it makes no sense to spread it over large areas. It would also be cumbersome and expensive. This is not an appealing scenario, especially in living rooms. Cinnamon is therefore applied in a targeted manner at strategically selected places.
- where ant trails run
- at possible entry points into the house
- e.g. B. patio doors, window sills, wall cracks
- as a barrier line
- near ant nests
notice: Outdoors, the spice is exposed to the rain, which washes it away and with it its fragrances. Therefore, it should be renewed promptly after rainy days.
Which cinnamon to use?
This spice is not only used in the run-up to Christmas. It can be found in almost every kitchen cupboard all year round. Therefore, the question can be answered as follows: take the cinnamon that is available to you without much effort. That could be:
- whole cinnamon sticks
- finely ground cinnamon powder
- cinnamon oil
There are definitely differences between the individual forms in terms of their effectiveness against the ant colony. These are explained in more detail below in the associated instructions.
tip: Experience has shown that quality and price do not affect effectiveness. You can therefore also use cheap cinnamon products for this project.
Use cinnamon sticks
The benefit of fighting ants with whole cinnamon sticks is that you can easily pick them up and dispose of them afterwards. They hardly leave any traces. But at the same time, the weakest fragrance intensity emanates from them. From experience, cinnamon sticks are only worthwhile if only a small area needs to be free of ants. Or if only they are at hand. If the scent of the cinnamon sticks alone is not enough, add a few sticks or switch to cinnamon powder or cinnamon oil.
tip: You might also have the option of pounding cinnamon sticks finer. This releases even more scent molecules and thus enhances the effect of the agent.
cinnamon powder
Cinnamon powder will probably be found most often in a private household. It is a good household remedy against the small insects, because finely ground cinnamon gives off an intense scent. How to apply the cinnamon powder:
- First observe the movements of the animals, regardless of whether they are in the garden or in the house. This way you can determine which "roads" they are using.
- Make the streets impassable by crossing each one with a longer line of cinnamon powder, about 2 inches wide. This is better than just scattering along the roads where they can dodge left or right.
- Block access into the house or to certain beds in the garden by spreading barrier lines.
- Scatter the powder around a spotted ant's nest to make it leave soon. At the same time, make sure to use the spice to block paths to places that they are not allowed to conquer.
tip: Be generous when sprinkling cinnamon powder. Small amounts may have too weak an effect to drive off the ant colony completely.
Cinnamon oil against ants
You can also effectively combat these annoying insects with natural cinnamon oil. Its intense scent has an even more deterrent effect on the ant colony than the cinnamon powder. Just a few drops of it are enough. You can buy cinnamon oil for a few euros in drugstores and pharmacies, among other places. You can use the oil neat or as a solution.
- Dip cotton swabs in oil
- apply it to selected areas
- alternatively prepare a spray solution
- Mix 50 ml water, 50 ml alcohol and 20 drops of cinnamon oil
- Spray strategically important places with it
tip: The amount of alcohol can also be replaced with water. Then, however, the solution cannot be mixed well and must be shaken vigorously before each spraying.
Other smells
All experiences indicate that this spice is always effective against ants. If it doesn't look like it, there is certainly a comprehensible explanation. This could be found in other smells, for example. Because just as there are scents that drive ants away, there are also smells that magically attract them. If the cinnamon scent is overlaid by other smells, this reduces its effectiveness. It helps to look for other sources of scent and eliminate them. In the house, this means, among other things, that the rooms have to be cleaned thoroughly before this spice is used again.
Cons of Cinnamon
As good as it works, this spice also has a major disadvantage. It just drives the animals away from it. You will look around for a new place to live and work. If you're unlucky, you won't like this one any more than the first location. The fight may have to go on merrily until the animals have been driven far enough away.
avoid resettlement
Ants are so tiny that they can almost always find a way back into the house. There are no limits to these nimble animals outdoors anyway. The instructions for combating them therefore also include information on how to keep them away in the future. So that the control success can be enjoyed for longer, ants may no longer be "invited" in the future. Openly available food sources of sugar or starch act like a magnet for them and should be avoided.
experiences
Make up your own mind based on the experiences of others using cinnamon against ants. We have researched and collected the experiences of other ants plagued.
notice: For reasons of better legibility, small spelling mistakes (spaces, transposed letters, etc.) in the quotations have been corrected. The exact sources are linked under the indication of the respective forum.
"Cinnamon helped us… just sprinkle a trace in front of the terrace door or something. The ants don't like that."
Source: www.hausgarten.net, user: scheinfeld, 07/19/2016
"Ants really don't like cinnamon. However, you will only be able to chase them away with it. If you don't plug the loopholes or "supply" them with new cinnamon powder regularly, they will come back. I don't know if cinnamon sticks have exactly the same effect. […]"
Source: www.chefkoch.de, user: malta1993, 04/21/2007
"Cinnamon helps a lot!
The cinnamon will probably cover up the scent marks.”
Source: www.ameisenforum.de, user: eat more plastic, 06.03.2012
“[… ] I always mix cinnamon and baking soda and spread the mixture on their streets and peepholes (where they come out of the ground). It doesn't take long for them to move. But after the rain you have to redistribute it again!”
Source: www.krautundrueben.de, user: Druid, April 19, 2009
"Hm: for me, the cinnamon only worked in one case: there was/is an ant trail along the coach house under a doorstep (outside). When a new door came in, they suddenly wanted to enter the room too: immediately sprinkled cinnamon - drove them away. But I couldn't drive them out of my roses with buried cinnamon sticks or sprinkled cinnamon. […]"
Source: www.krautundrueben.de, user: Cornelssen, 04/19/2009
“[… ] I drive away ants in the pots on my terrace with cinnamon, they hate the smell and flee. […]"
Source: www.forum.garten-pur.de, user: lion's mouth, 09.04.2009
"I tried that with cinnamon powder on the tubs on my balcony last year, unfortunately it didn't help me. Too bad because I like the smell of cinnamon.”
Source: www.forum.garten-pur.de, user: freiburgbalkon, 11.04.2009