I wouldn't use any chemicals near my veggies! My nice basil plant had a fire ant mound erupt underneath it. My garden guru friend said to use a drench of Dawn and water. They can't stand it! You put one tablespoon in with one gallon of water. Mix it well and pour on the ants. That will be my first chore tomorrow! zackey

I will try that! If nothing else it will clean my taters!

Fire ants have cost agriculture hundreds of millions (probably more like billions) of dollars. Do you seriously think dish detergent will solve the problem, and all those professionals never thought of it?

Bad year for fire ants here, too.

Jonfrum - I believe the idea is to get the fire ants to abandon their nest in the 'taters & set up shop where poison can be used. No need to get nasty!

I got ants all over the place making homes in my beds too.. Luckily I haven't seen any fire ants yet.. But I've got ants that look to be farming aphids on my pepper plants.

I had good luck greatly reducing the numbers of cornfield ants in my garden last year by using a borax and sugar water solution. I know for fire ants it is supposed to take a different bait, one that is protien based instead of sugar based. Anyhow, you need to use borax mixed as a bait, you can't just sprinkle it around. Some plants are sensitive to sudden large increases in boron, so making it so the ants take and eat it (and hopefully feed it to their queen) is important. Anyway, if you do a web search of fire ants and borax bait, you'll find lots of reading most likely.

And I have to admit, my mind must have been in the gutter a little bit, 'cause I surely giggled at the title of the thread.

The good news. You are the only one that gets hurt. They don't bother your potatoes.

Yes dish soap does kill them, as it washes off their waxy protection. But they do go a long way down in the soil and you probably will not kill the queen but they do no like being destructed and will usually move. You will kill all that the soapy water touches. I know I have watched them curl up as soon as the soapy water hits them. Yes use soapy water and do not let anyone tell you different. Yes it will only kill some but sure beats getting bit every-time you go into the garden.

There was a company that says they can kill them cheaper with a gas system.

This post was edited by wally-1936 on Mon, May 27, 13 at 20:10

Well the soapy water seemed to at least make them move, I don't know where yet.

I put on some long rubber gloves, just in case and dug some out yesterday. I didn't see a single ant.

I'm still popping blisters from the other day!

Diatomaceous earth took care of an underground golden ant colony under my cukes.

Perhaps some orange oil treatment - I made my own by letting rinds (orange and lemon) covered with water stew in a crock-pot on high all day. Strain out liquid into jar when cooled.

Here is some info (go to the website to see how it is made):

Citrus oil is a natural, non-toxic insect deterrent and wards off fire ants, flies, aphids, mosquitoes, even fleas and may even help control the spread of West Nile Virus. Although safe to spray, citrus oil can irritate sensitive skin and damage the eyes.

If you are planning to spray plants instead of using harmful pesticides, citrus oil can be quite harsh and some plants may be sensitive to the oil. To preserve plants, be sure to dilute the mixture further, by adding one gallon of water for every two ounces of oil. The oil is great to spray on anthill mounds...

Here is a link that might be useful: How to make citrus oil to control insects