I just need to know where you get the nematodes and the compost tea mixture to help with fire ant control

Most of the good feed stores & nurseries will carry what you need. If you post your city or area, people can help you with specific locations.

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The "soap" you use is normally chemicals, etc. Use real SOAP !!

Yea, you just go down two lights and turn left...you can't miss it.

Just teasing with ya. We need to know where you are or we can't help.

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David Hall
Moderator
Dirt Doctor Lawns Forum

Okay I am somewhat hijacking this post. I figured the subject was exactly what I wanted to cover "Fire Ants".

Okay I just applied a mixture of:

2oz Orange Oil
2oz Compost Tea
2oz Liquid Molasses
2oz Garlic Pepper Tea
1 gal Water

I poured this mixture slowly on a Fire Ant bed. I did this twice today and the little buggers are still crawling around. How long does it take for the mixture to kill them?

FYI: 2oz is a 1/4 cup.

Help,
Chad

Your mixture is too weak, You need 4 to 6 oz. per gallon of each ingredient. You might not need the garlic/pepper ingredient since you are killing them instead of repelling. The orange oil is the one that does the actual killing.

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The "soap" you use is normally chemicals, etc. Use real SOAP !!

I think your problem might be the way you apply it. I have killed them with less than 2 ounces each of orange oil and molasses. You must drench the entire mound until the liquid runs out the top and do it quickly. If you don't they will disperse the queens into the side mounds and you won't kill them all. Just remember that orange oil is a contact killer and must get on the ant to kill it.
Richard Spitzer

I thought I read HG's instructions correct on Liquid Fire Ant Control:



Did I just read it wrong? If I did and it requires more I am willing to try. Though the stuff is pretty darn expensive. The little terrors made a home in the end of one of my Veggie Garden rows next to my corn seedlings...

Thanks keeps sending recommendations.

Chad

Chad, I did a little searching on the Doctor's site and found various formulas. I also may have read it wrong. Maybe others can help. After reading what should be the latest

http://www.dirtdoctor.com/view_question.php?id=204 ,

two oz. of orange oil should do it.

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The "soap" you use is normally chemicals, etc. Use real SOAP !!

I have a question about fire ants in a country cemetary. My family members are buried there and I would like to be able to erradicate the ants for good. I am usually able to get out there every few months. The ant mound is around one of the head stones. There are other mounds in the cemetary which has St. Augustine grass and is pretty well maintained except for the ants. Any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Gilda

Howard elaborated on the fire ant treatment yesterday on the radio. Use the 2 oz. of orange oil formula. He stressed not making a whole lot of racket so as to not disturb the mound(s). Pour the mixture straight down the center of the pile making sure the solution reaches all the way to bottom of pile (to get queens). He said some people use a funnel (like a transmission oil funnel) to achieve this. After that, sprinkle around the mound (and on yourself ) to get the stragglers.

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The "soap" you use is normally chemicals, etc. Use real SOAP !!

How exactly are you supposed to ensure that you're getting to the bottom of a given pile? I've got one pile that I've been trying to erradicate using various methods for going on a year now. The way I see it, applying any sort of drench is a matter of drenching it and hoping that you've added enough to get to the root of the mound. Am I missing something?

~Dave

Okay, I'm gonna get radical here: EXPERIMENT TIME!

Use horticultural cornmeal ALONE! Use at least a cup to a gallon of water, two cups is better, and drown the mound with it. Mix in a little molasses - 2 oz. maybe - to get things rolling. It kills them.

Alternative method: Heavily powder the mound with horicultural cornmeal and then water it in. It kills them.

Tag - You're it! Try it and tell everyone how it works. Dcluck, you're in for a treat! It takes about a week. Surprise!

Kathe

Dave, when I've applied the mix to ant piles in the open (not under rocks, etc.) the mound opened up as I poured the stream of liquid on the mound. That has worked well for me. If you don't get to the queens, they will move to another area. Malcom Beck pokes a hole down into the center of the pile first. If doing that, you better move fast.

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The "soap" you use is normally chemicals, etc. Use real SOAP !!

I've used your alternative method using horticultural cornmeal a few times on several large mounds that I've had on my parkway. I covered the mounds to the point where you couldn't see the mound soil beneath then slowly watered it in as to avoid runoff. The next day, no signs whatsoever that the fireants even noticed.

What has worked for me, on small to mid sized mounds is the garret juice/orange oil/molasses drenchings. The problem with this was/is (and I don't see mention of this by people who recommned this method) is that it kills off my turf where applied. The st. augustine should bounce back and fill in over time, but honestly I'm not too keen on dead spots in my lawn. I'd as soon leave the small and mid sized mounds be in my front lawn rather than have dead grass. The back yard is another matter since we spend a lot more time there. Then again, I've never had fire ants in the back yard.

Back to the the mound I've had problems with getting rid of. It's huge! Has been since last spring. I've tried the above mentioned drenchings, I've tried watered in cornmeal, large quantities of watered in instant grits (this has never worked for me regardless of mound size), liquid molasses drenchings at 10 tbspns/gallon and watered in dry molasses. The drenchings with both molasses and the orange oil/garret juice mixtures seemed to work at some level, but I obviously am never applying enough. After a few days surface activity was back to normal. My last attempt to kill this mound was 4 gallons of the orange oil based drench. No love.. My next stab at this mound is going to involve some method of forcing the drench down into the mound rather than pouring. Time to head to the plumbing fixtures section of HD.

Hence my question. How can you be sure you've applied enough of any given drench? Are there some general guidelines for guaging mound depth or is it actually just an anyone's guess affair?

~Dave

They make their homes so very very deep, it's hard to get the whole thing when there is a really established one. I'm very surprised that the cornmeal hasn't worked, but perhaps there is a missing element that pulls the picture together? I have used a pvc pipe to get it down deeper, like Malcolm, and it worked well.

I have just never had a mound that completely defeated the orange oil/compost/ molasses/cornmeal drench. It has happened that more than one application was needed but never have they just lived on and on.

Have you tried pouring nematodes directly into the mound? That would be a way to really get them in there. I did do that once with a fierce, old mound two days after a drench knocked them back but not out. The nematodes took care of the rest. It's worth a shot. I have to agree with Howard that the nematodes are the fiinal line of defense.

Good luck, Dave! We're rooting for you!
Kathe