Fire ants - how to eliminate?

[Sjisty]

I have always used Amdro on fire ants before I had chickens. Now I'm afraid that they will eat it and get sick. What can I put on fire ant mounds that won't hurt my chickens but will kill the ants?

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Amdro is exactly what I use. I try to put it down just before a rain and I don't let the birds out until after it has.

 

[MMPoultryFarms]

heres a wonderful link for you that is safe for your chickens. http://doubledanger.com/living-green/10-tips-for-organic-ant-control

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Some of those solutions will work for some ant species, but none of them with the qualified exception of DE is going to work with fire ants.

The DE can be made to work if you can keep it dry and you're willing to rake out every mound and powder it well. The first rain though and it loses effectiveness.

 

[The Kibble Goddess]

Drat, I was hoping the chickens would eat the ants. No?

 

[Sjisty]

Thanks, A. T. I'll try the DE. It doesn't look like I have to worry about rain anytime soon.

 

[Beekissed]

Have you tried Dawn dishwashing liquid? Said to dissolve the oils on their skin and leaves them vulnerable to infection and such. Its what they used to quell the killer bee invasions from South America. Worth a try!

 

[birdsNbeesNseeds]

http://fireant.tamu.edu/materials/factsheets_pubs/results_all.cfm

Good reading.

012 Organic and Other Methods of Fire Ant Control - basically a review of what works and what doesn't

 

[dkvart1]

I have lived in Tennessee and now am in Florida, my method of dealing with any ant population is boiling water...effective and don't have to worry about toxins. I boil several large pots of water then pour it into the whole... use enough to really saturate the ground. Sometimes it takes a lot, but it's worth it to be rid of them. Only time I can't use it is if they are in the garden area, then I would lose my plants

 

[Tinkspirit70]

I live in fla too and they are a pain, I use ortho powder..First I take a shovel and dig half way down into the mound sprinkle in the ortho and place the dirt back on the mound, then I sprinkle some water on top. It kills the queen as well and the poison is under ground and the water helps dissolve the powder through out the mound. Good luck ) Oh and in the garden I use the paste bait but my girls cant get in there, I just put a little dot on the mound.