[Seagull]

Please could anyone help me identify these small bugs.  I found them when I was digging over my new allotment for the first time.  They look like ants of some kind or tiny spiders.  There were literally hundreds and hundreds of them.  They were not visible on the surface; only when I dug.

I can't imagine that they are good for the allotment, so the additional question is how do I get rid of them.

Many thanks!

[CHRISDONOHUE]

Looks to me like ants which produce eggs which grow into new ants.   The good news is that ants do virtually no damage to your allotment.   I would get a good spadeful of eggs and put it somewhere where you are unlikely to grow anything.   Then forget them and keep digging.   Allotments are hard work but once you have dug them and started to grow crops, they are very enjoyable.

[John]

All creatures have their place, even slugs, but these appear to be small ants who will do no harm to your crops and possibly some good by killing pests. Soil ecology is a complex web of interactions, I reckon best to do as little harm as reasonably possible.

[Seagull]

Thank you!

[New shoot]

I think they are yellow meadow ants, which I also have on my allotment (clay soil over chalk).

They have a couple of dome shaped nests on the grass paths next to my plot, but I think the nests extend a long way underground.  They have been there for years and do no harm whatever 

[8doubles]

The worst thing that ants do is protect aphids .
The good thing is that ants moving on a plant are easy to spot and will bring to your attention aphids you would otherwise might not have noticed.