Have you noticed trails of ants in your garden or around your plants?
If so, you could have an Argentine ant issue.
You’ll need to act fast to prevent them from taking over your garden or outdoor space.
Here at Smith’s Pest Management, we’ve been helping homeowners manage pest populations for years, and we’ve compiled our top ant control tips into this blog.
Key Takeaways
- To get rid of Argentine ants, eliminate honeydew-producing insects, limit moisture sources, maintain a constant supply of liquid ant bait, and apply non-repellent spray insecticides.
- To make your ant control efforts as effective as possible, avoid mistakes like using granular baits, setting out too few bait stations, or forgetting about insects that produce honeydew.
- If your DIY methods aren’t working, contact Smith’s Pest Management for professional help: (408) 871-6988.
Before You Get Started
Take Safety Precautions
- Adhering to safety guidelines is crucial when using insecticides to treat Argentine ants.
- Always read the label directions and ensure you understand them before applying.
- Wear protective clothing, such as gloves, long sleeves, and masks, to prevent skin contact and inhalation.
- Finally, all pest control products should be stored securely and out of reach of children and pets to prevent accidental exposure.
Understand Argentine Ant Behavior
Argentine ants are notorious for forming vast supercolonies, which are networks of interconnected nests working collectively as one large colony.
This is important for homeowners because it means they can be really tough to get rid of.
These ants prefer sweet foods, which makes your vegetable garden and fruit trees common targets.
Understanding where (and how) these ants live and what they like to eat can help you more effectively target your control methods.
How to Keep Argentine Ants Away
1. Eliminate Honeydew-Producing Insects
Argentine ants are attracted to the sweet, sticky substance known as honeydew, produced by pests like aphids, mealybugs, white flies, and scale insects.
When these insects and the honeydew they produce are present, it creates a welcoming environment for Argentine ants.
With that in mind, the first step to getting rid of the ants is getting rid of the pests that produce their favorite food sources.
How to Do It:
- Check for and Treat Infested Plants: Check your trees and shrubs for signs of honeydew-producing insects. If you see sticky stuff on the leaves or notice ants climbing up and down the stems, it means there’s honeydew present. To kill the insects that produce it, spray insecticidal soap or neem oil directly on the affected plants (follow the product’s label directions for application instructions). These natural remedies can help suffocate or repel the pests without harming the good bugs in your garden.
- Bring in Beneficial Insects: Consider inviting natural predators like ladybugs or lacewings into your garden. You can buy these garden helpers live or in egg form. Once in your garden, these insects love munching on aphids and other honeydew producers and will help eliminate food sources for Argentine ants.
- Trim Heavily Infested Branches: If you notice a specific area that’s heavily infested with scale insects, aphids, mealybugs, or white flies (look for signs like yellowing leaves, sticky residue on plants, or small clusters of insects), prune those branches. This can help get rid of a large number of troublesome insects.
- Keep Your Plants Healthy: Healthy plants are less likely to attract pests, so water, fertilize, and care for them regularly. Keeping your plants strong makes them less appealing to insects!
2. Limit Moisture Sources
Getting rid of moisture is a great way to reduce Argentine ant populations.
These little guys love damp places because they need water to thrive.
How to Do It:
- Adjust Your Watering: Try watering your plants and lawn once a week. Most plants do just fine with that!
- Check for Drainage Problems: Make sure your yard drains appropriately so water doesn’t pool in low spots.
- Fix Your Sprinklers: Check your sprinkler system for leaks or cracks and fix them quickly. This helps avoid damp spots that ants love.
- Eliminate Standing Water: Look for standing water around your home, such as in birdbaths, pots, or gutters, and remove it. In addition to limiting Argentine ant habitats, this is also a great way to get rid of mosquitos on your property!
- Improve Wet Soil: If parts of your yard are always soggy, consider improving the soil for better drainage or regrading those tricky areas.
3. Maintain a Constant Supply of Liquid Ant Bait
Keeping a steady supply of liquid ant bait in ant-prone areas is super important to control Argentine ant infestations.
These ants can create huge underground colonies, so a consistent, low dose of bait is the best way to spread the bait effectively throughout the colonies.
How to Do It:
- Pick the Right Concentration: Go for a liquid ant bait with a 1% concentration. While stronger options, like 4% or 5%, exist, they’re likely to kill the ants before they have a chance to take any of the bait back to their colonies
- Follow Ant Trails and Place Bait at the Source: Track ants to find where they’re coming from. Once you spot the origin, place some liquid ant bait nearby. Make sure to refresh the bait regularly since it can go stale or get contaminated with dead ants, which can make the ants less likely to feed on it.
- Spread the Bait Around: Place bait stations in key spots throughout your yard, especially where you see ants often. Make sure they’re out of the reach of pets and kids.
- Check and Refill: Regularly check and refill your bait stations. The best way to ensure the ants are taking the bait back to their nests is to offer a steady supply of bait.
- Be Patient: Remember, tackling super colonies takes time. Keep using the liquid bait, cut down on food and water sources, and give it up to a year for the best results!
4. Apply a Non-Repellent Spray Insecticide
Spraying a non-repellent insecticide around the outside of your home is a great way to keep ants at bay and stop them from getting inside.
Products like Termidor or Alpine WSG are perfect for this since ants can’t detect them.
They’ll walk right through it and take it back to their colony, which helps spread the effects even further!
How to Do It:
- Read the Label: Before you start, check the product label and instructions. These products need careful handling to work well and stay safe.
- Choose the Right Equipment: To get an even application, use a sprayer made for insecticides. Just make sure your gear is clean and in good shape!
- Apply around the Perimeter: Focus on the foundation of your home, especially around entry points like doors, windows, and cracks. You’re aiming to create a barrier that people must cross to get inside.
- Time Your Application: For the best results, apply the products when it’s dry outside—rain can wash them away. Early morning or late afternoon is perfect since it’s cooler and helps prevent quick evaporation.
- Follow-up: Monitor any ant activity and reapply the insecticide as directed on the label. This will ensure that your barrier stays effective over time.
Methods to Avoid
1. Granular Baits
Argentine ants aren’t really into fats or proteins.
This is important because many ant baits contain these ingredients, especially the granular ones.
If you want to control Argentine ant populations, you’ll need to focus on liquid baits.
In addition to the fact that the makeup of these baits is different, it’s also important to remember that Argentine ants don’t take solids into their digestive system; instead, they suck liquid from their food sources.
With this in mind, save your money and use liquid (rather than granular) bait.
Terro liquid outbait is excellent for taking out small colonies, but if you’re dealing with larger or multiple colonies, try using a 1% solution (like Nissus Dominant % or Greenways 1%).
These solutions penetrate deeper into the colony and help eliminate adults more effectively.
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2. Using Too Few Bait Stations
It’s really helpful to place several liquid bait stations around your property.
Why?
Because ants can have separate colonies scattered throughout your yard.
You might manage to control them in the backyard, but if a couple of colonies are in the front yard, you could still end up with ants invading your home.
Using multiple bait stations ensures you tackle all those hidden colonies, keeping your home ant-free!
If you have Argentine ants near your home, try moving your bait farther away from the house.
Liquid sugar bait is especially effective in these instances, since it can attract ants all the way from inside or near your home.
Once the ants discover a reliable source of food and moisture, they will head toward it.
By establishing a regular food source that’s further away, you can disrupt their usual feeding patterns and keep them from returning to your home.
3. Forgetting About Honeydew-Producing Insects
Dealing with aphids and scale on your plants may FEEL like it doesn’t target ants at the source, but that’s just wrong.
If you really want to control Argentine ant populations, it’s essential to start by tackling honeydew-producing insects.
When you start there, you’re making your entire garden less appealing to ants, which will work to provide long-term protection for you and your plants.
You’re also taking steps to keep your plants healthy and create an environment that discourages ants from sticking around.
When to Call a Professional
1. When Your DIY Methods Aren’t Working
If you’re really struggling to get rid of honeydew-producing bugs on your trees and shrubs, it might be time to consult a professional horticulturist.
Here’s why:
Many products are specifically designed to eliminate pests like aphids and scale, but spraying the canopy of a tree often doesn’t do the trick.
What you really need is a systemic insecticide, which can be absorbed through the tree’s vascular system.
These insecticides work their way to the leaves, where honeydew-producing bugs like to feed.
While this process is definitely effective, it can take up to a whole season to really start working.
If you want faster results, you’ll be better off contacting a team of professionals who use techniques like direct injections.
2. If you Have a Persistent or Large-Scale Infestation
If you’re dealing with a big ant problem, getting professional help can be a smart move.
Argentine ants are known for building huge super colonies with vast and complicated networks, which can make them tough to handle on your own.
Professionals bring valuable knowledge and experience to tackle these tricky infestations.
Pros also have access to advanced tools and innovative strategies that can effectively target those hard-to-reach areas.
Teams like Smith’s Pest Management really understand how Argentine ants behave and can come up with a plan to disrupt their colonies on multiple levels – which means a comfortable, ant-free space for you.
You Don’t Have to Live With Argentine Ants! Smith’s Pest Management can Help!
Argentine ants can take over your garden and plants in no time. Fortunately, you don’t have to stand by and watch it happen.
Here at Smith’s Pest Management, we’ve been providing comprehensive ant extermination services to residents in the San Francisco Bay Area and Central Coast for more than 20 years.
We’re prepared to help you identify the source of your Argentine ant issue, and find a creative, family-safe solution.
Contact us today at (408) 871-6988 to learn more about us and how we can help you enjoy a pest-free space.
FAQs
What are Argentine ants?
Argentine ants are tiny, invasive ants originally from South America.
They have spread to many parts of the world, especially in areas with mild climates.
These ants are famous for creating large super colonies, which can disrupt local ecosystems and cause problems for homeowners.
How can I find an Argentine ant nest?
To find an Argentine ant nest, watch their trails when they’re most active.
Look for ants carrying food back to their nest, which is usually hidden underground or in places like wall gaps or under plants.
Gently disturbing the soil or checking under objects can sometimes help you spot their colony.
For more information on how to get rid of ants once you’ve found their nests, check out our blog.
What time of day are Argentine ants most active?
Argentine ants are typically most active during the cooler times of day, like early morning and late afternoon.
However, in moderate climates, they can be active all day long, keeping steady foraging trails as they look for food and resources.
Why is it important to get rid of Argentine ants?
Getting rid of Argentine ants is essential for keeping your garden plants healthy.
Here’s why:
These pesky ants protect harmful pests like aphids, scale insects, and mealy bugs by feeding on their waste.
By controlling Argentine populations, you allow the good guys—like natural predators of garden bugs—to do their thing and keep pest populations in check.
