2007-03-26 06:33:44 · 6 answers · asked by kelleygaither2000 1 in Home & Garden ➔ Garden & Landscape
Check out this website from the University of California, Davis. http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu . It has a lot of good ideas to get rid of pests without using pesticides, so I think it will work for you.
I would really ask yourself though, are the ants really bothering the plants? There is a certain amount of ants that won't hurt anything. Pesticides should be a last resort, especially around food crops!!!!!
2007-03-26 14:45:36 · answer #1 · answered by Miss Vida 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sevin dust is good.
Boric acid is good too, not a "pesticide" per se, but it is an irritant that ants can't handle. Mainly used for pesticide, but it has many uses as well, like gettin tough stains out of clothing.
2007-03-26 13:58:33 · answer #2 · answered by Amber C 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i grow an organic garden every year and ive tried tobacco n water and many other types of natural so called pesticides from listerine mixes to everything!! i have found that when you grow an organic garden you accept the bugs and all!! pyritherins are made from flower petals and are the best natural pesticide but i went a step further one year when an old timer told me to plant marigolds around the entire perimeter of my garden , i have always grown marigolds and noticed that there were never any bugs on them, so i bought a few and did a control test and took bugs from my garden and put them on the marigolds and they literally ran from the plant!!! the key is to get the marigolds in bloom and the rich garden soil will keep them blooming along with pinching off the old blooms!! they keep the walking bugs from wandering in!! now this will not stop any grasshoppers or locusts so to say !! nothing will!! but the pungent smell of the marigolds do help quite a lot with the smaller hungry critters!! and they look pretty around your garden!! ive even heard of people harvesting the blooms and grinding them up and mixing with water or even cooking them down with water to put in a spray bottle to spray their plants as well , marigolds are fairly cheap and well worth it it will dramatically slow down the bug population!!
2007-03-26 14:17:38 · answer #3 · answered by joe k 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Many products are available through a company called Safer. They specialize in soap-based pesticides. You will find general and specific target agents for your plants.
Keep in mind that infestation of any sort requires chemical intervention. It is not the chemical that is the problem, perse, it is the usage. Using the right dilution rate, the right period of day application, and the proper period of time between applications is the key. Hope it helps.
2007-03-26 13:50:36 · answer #4 · answered by jerry g 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You shouldn't worry about ants in your garden unless it's the little red fire ants. Other ants are hard workers and they pollinate, plus keep the soil aerated. If there are aphids on your plants, the ants will encourage the aphids, so try to wash off any aphids with a garden hose.
If you have fire ants, your town hall will have accepted ways to control them. They are running rampant in the South.
2007-03-26 14:35:40 · answer #5 · answered by Kacky 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Pyrithrins are derived from a flower, but I use Sevin dust. Whatever you use, don't forget to apply to the underside of leaves
2007-03-26 13:46:14 · answer #6 · answered by mark747 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋