need advice on ant problem

[Boo-Boo's Mama]

Be sure and use Food Grade/Code DE around your chickens. They sell other grades that can contain things that are not good for the chickens.

B.C. (before chickens) I used DE on fire ant mounds in my garden that was not food grade.

Boiling water makes them uncomfortable so they pick move, often to a new location in your garden

 

[jeb251]

try putting plain old grits down, they eat it and it expands inside them and kills them works like a charm, if it get wet, just wait till it dries and put more down

 

[BlackGiantMerlin]

Thank you all again, I'm not sure what kind of ants they are but I only see two kinds here, the big black ones that come out after it rains - harmless to us, the animals and I believe beneficial to the environment, then the small tiny ones that bite/sting the crap out of you. Takes a couple of weeks for the itching to stop!

I think between making my own boric acid mixture and using grits (dry only?) that should eradicate the problem.

Thank you Boo-Boo for reminding me about grades of DE, I think all I have on hand is garden stuff but it's so silty, have to wear a mask as to not breathe it in -- but it is meant for pest control. I just don't want to hurt beneficial insects at the same time.

Desert Peep, I hope you're right, running the AC when it's almost October is ridiculous, but we hit 112 on Sunday in Phoenix. I am in the far northeast valley - Cave Creek area. The clouds today are a novelty!!

 

[greenSearcher]

Quote:
My small flock of Naked neck hens destroyed most of fire ant mounds around, I,ve seen once the action when they were scratching, and fire ants got aggreviated and defensive starting to crawl up hens legs stinging them, but my hens responded picking them up from their legs and instantly swallowing them, then they continued to scratch, until they got deeper into the ants nest exposing tasty larvae.

Larvae made hens go nuts, they took care of the larvae in no time and then ate remaining ants even the ants tried to sting.

My hens did not give up, they exterminated mound of fire ants.

I am in shock! How many hens do you have? Were they all NN?

My regular hens have shown passing interest in ants, and I am pretty diligent in killing the mounds before they get too large. There are the big fire ants,, that bite and sting. They clamp down their jaws in the skin and then repeatedly sting. Those mounds are huge. When I moved to TX I learned about the little fire ants, look like sugar ants but they eat protein and the mounds are more like loose soil than a hard tall thing. They are really evident in clay soil, as all of sudden the grass/plant/weed is growing in loose soil that rises over the root area and is very grainy. The only thing that has worked isadding 1/2 C each Garrett juice and Orange oil to a gallon of water, shake well just before using. With your feet protected, attack the mound with a shovel splitting it open and pour the entire gallon in and around the mound. Usually kills the mound, even when it is in my compost pile. It is toxic to all insects and probably no too good for the Chickens, so I block off the treated areas for a day or so.

I hate these small fire ants, when they bite it burns me for hours and I get small pustules that stay for nearly a week. Ugh!

Nice to hear that my babies that are housed in the garage, will hopefully make short work of the ants. At 4 weeks my NN babies scarf up the flies and little beetle bugs in the bedding. They do a real good job keeping it all stirred up. They will be outside by Halloween, with my other year old chickens.