[JohnB47]

I have now found four nests - all are full of little ginger coloured ants.  One is under a white currant bush and has killed it. I've tried using nippon anti killer liquid but it doesn't seem to be working. The tube says 'controls common black ants' so maybe my ants aren't attracted to it? I choose the liquid because it seems less likely to contaminate my plot - other types, eg dust, have major warnings about using them near foodstuffs.

Any suggestions?

[maloneranger]

Are you sure it's the ants that have killed the bush?

Ants like dry places; isn't it more likely that the bush died of thirst [and maybe hunger  ]

[JohnB47]

Are you sure it's the ants that have killed the bush?

Ants like dry places; isn't it more likely that the bush died of thirst [and maybe hunger  ]

Well, you could be right. It just seemed suspicious that the plant started dying off just as I noticed a large swelling at the base of it - the spoil from the nest being dug out. It could't possibly be my fault that the bush died 

So you're suggesting that ants are a benign presence? I'd still like them to move however.

[barley]

I grow my tomatoes in an old bath in the green house

we had ants for 2 years running and yes they killed 2 plants  - the plants obviously were in the way of their plans and they destroyed all the roots and plants neck .

ant powder had no effect - the only way I could get rid of them was to dig out the nest , be careful though as red ants give a nasty bite

[maloneranger]

Are you sure it's the ants that have killed the bush?

Ants like dry places; isn't it more likely that the bush died of thirst [and maybe hunger  ]

So you're suggesting that ants are a benign presence? I'd still like them to move however.

I'm not saying that they are benign, but they are not keen on having nests in wet places.
Also, they don't like being disturbed.

I think that I would really turn over the soil [?down to root level].
That would let you see the extent of the problem.

Then, I'd water well, and see how they were in a couple of days.

If they were still thriving and I thought they were a problem, I'd disturb again and think about dousing them with boiling water.

mr.

[JohnB47]

Ok, thanks for those ideas.

I've had a think and wonder if I could just dig up the centre of each nest, put it in a bucket and transfer it to some waste ground on the  edge of the allotment. Even if I don't get all of it, it may put the remainder off.

[3759allen]

depending on the availability of water i'd prob disturb as much as pos and drown the little critters.

keep doing this as much as pos and they should move to somewhere more suited to them. from what i can make out they don't like disturbance or water.

[3 allotments]

Iv'e had the same problem twice in gh next to toms so i drowned them out toms loved it

[beesrus]

I would go along with 3 Allotments. I had a couple of infestations this year in the greenhouse, one even in a tomato growbag of all places. I tried irritating them every day by rearranging their home, but in the end flooded them out on 3 or 4 occasions. They soon moved out then, as we would do.
In my experience early detection helps while the nest is small. Greenhouses and under large bushes can get surprisingly dry without realising it. If there is a marauding ant colony moving around an allotment, putting down a tarpaulin next to flooding and/or digging soon gets them on the move. A couple of Springs back I managed to migrate the ants half the length of the allotment as I dug, flooded, planted, and kept on moving the adjacent tarpaulin.

[Headgardener22]

I've found that wasp nest killer seems to do the job. (I probably shouldn't have suggested using something that isn't designed for the task - against european legislation probably) but, I had a wasps nest and red ants about at the same time and spraying the wasps nest seemed to kill the ants as well.

[JohnB47]

Thought I'd start another thread on this.

I'm reluctant to use anything that is supposed to be kept well away from edibles, so I was wondering if I could use that dust stuff on a shallow container, covered, near or in the nests. Do the ants eat this stuff and would that work?

I decided to dig up what I thought was a small nest - crikey, it went on and on. I filled a medium sized trug with soil, ants and eggs. I had planned to chuck it in a waste corner of the site but decided against when it produced so much nest. Instead I filled the trug and the hole with water and hope that that will finish them off.

Would contained ant dust work, rather than spreading it on the soil?

Thanks.

[Yorkie]

Thought I'd start another thread on this.

Hi John

I've merged the threads so everyone can see their previous responses in one place 

[JohnB47]

Thought I'd start another thread on this.

Hi John

I've merged the threads so everyone can see their previous responses in one place 

Thank you.

[mobilekat]

We have suffered those ants in pot before and we have now found the Home Defence Antstop granules to be quite good- they are sugar based so they take them back to the nest and eat it
Takes a few days, but seems to work

Just make sure where you leave the granules is covered- so nothing else can get to them

[Gardener and Rabbit]

One is under a white currant bush and has killed it.

Almost identical problem here...blackcurrant bush looking very sick indeed, covered in blackfly and ants. So far have sprayed several times with BugClear (based on rape-seed oil) to try and tackle the blackfly, and removed the growing tips which were infested.