I've been "playing" with all sorts of things to get rid of Carpenter Ants and I finally found a poison that will nail them. I have water oaks around my home and if you know those trees they rot from the inside out. That's a Carpenter Ants' dream home. The product is Termidor SC, or, Taurus SC; the Taurus is cheaper and that's what I used. They use the same active ingredient (Fipronil) in the same percentage. Neither are cheap! Amazon has it. You don't spray the ants or the nest, you spray where they travel which is the trunk of the tree in my case. I sprayed about a one foot wide band all around the tree trunks. In three or four days I started seeing dead and dying Carpenter Ants all over the ground; hundreds of them; Bingo. Exterminators use these products for termites. This is some bad poison so if you're a do-it-yourselfer, read ALL label precautions/instructions. You also need to treat again because eggs hatch. Maybe once every month I assume since I'm still working the situation. Good Luck!

I have a rather large ant hill that has spung up on/at my wooden privacy fence. I really don't mind if they live there, however, last year I put in a flower bed next to a different portion of the fence which included amending/adding soil against it to plant some annuals. Then in the fall, I got around to painting my fence and moved away the dirt and found to my surprise (wood supposed to be pressure-treated, but that's another story) termites eating away at the wood. Took care of that prob. and now put bricks against the wood if I put in beds along the fence. So, my question is, since ants eat/chase termites, is it ok to leave the ant hill where it lays?

A large colony of ants can leave the root system of a plant (or plants) high and dry, causing serious problems for anything from annuals to woody perennials. Some sweet feeders will bite though a plant's nectar tissues for a short cut trip to sweetness. There are other ways that ants can cause problems, too. I've seen them fight off lady bugs, for example. Heck, I've had them swarm ME when I was attempting to remove some Calico scale insects from a young elm! Anyway, kmbustos, you need to be very observant. If you simply have an abundance of ants, but they don't seem to be causing any real problems, your best bet might be to leave them alone. If, however, you notice some plants wilting or dieing in association with an ant colony, it's time to do something about it. Sometimes, opportunistic ants can become extremely populous in an area. So much so that they become a problem. It's far better for everyone that the numbers be controlled in such a case. 'Control' does not mean eradicate, kmbustos. Ants serve a purpose. Let your common sense be your guide.

Control of both Scale and Mealybugs is about the same and due care is necesary even when using Insecticidal Soaps since even that can kill off the predators of both. I have never seen a commercially available Insecticidal Soap that needed dilution, all I have seen are ready to use. If you wish to mix your own mix 1 teaspoon of soap (not a detergent, real soap) in 1 quart of water. Real soaps are like Fels Naptha, Ivory, Dr. Bronners, etc. those that are made partly by reacting animal fats with lye. As the link attached indicates most pesticides are ineffective against both of these wee buggers because they have a protective coating that keeps the pesticide from penetrating. Here is a link that might be useful: About Scale and Mealybugs