Hi there, Friends! Texas is plagued by fire ants that might possibly survive a zombie apocalypse. I kid you not--the suckers are rampant, hard to kill, and harmful to both plants and people. Today I'm sharing an organic remedy that really works...
Let me begin by saying, I have tried a lot of so-called solutions, including pricey organic products that only succeeded in making the ants move their mound a few feet. On the other hand, if you've ever used harsh insecticides, you'll find that they have to be applied periodically to keep the pests away. I don't know about you, but if I have to treat fire ants monthly, I would rather do it organically than drench my soil with pesticides! My remedy only calls for 2 ingredients: water and orange oil. Orange oil's primary ingredient is D-Limonene, an extract from citrus peel that kills ants.
Medina orange oil is highly concentrated and priced accordingly. At $26-$30 a bottle, it isn't cheap, but based on my experience it is a good value. At this writing, I treated approximately 10 large mounds with less than half a bottle almost 2 weeks ago and haven't seen any ants in the old mounds or discovered any new ones. Ready to make your own?
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Start by filling a gallon container 3/4 full with water. Next, add 4 capfuls of the orange oil. (*The mixture I recommend is highly concentrated, so if you are using it near plants, start with 2 capfuls first.) Then you can top off the jug with water, put the lid on and shake well. (I took the third photo before topping off the mixture with water. You'll need to shake the mixture before each use.) NOTE: If you see a solution that uses orange oil and Dawn dish soap--I've tried it and it doesn't work! I have seen others swear by this mixture, but it did not work on Texas fire ants! All I can think of is that the Dawn dilutes the high concentration of orange oil, making it less effective.
After carefully using a stick to poke several holes in the mound, apply in the early evening. The goal is to drench the mound and surrounding area. I used about half a gallon on smaller mounds and a whole gallon on larger ones. Reapply as needed after heavy rain or if you see new activity after several weeks.
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Good to know! We don't normally see fire ants in WV, but when my daughter and sil lived in FL, they did, and my sil was highly allergic!
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ReplyDeleteThis seems very useful if you live in fire ant country. I’m guessing it would also get rid of other pesky bugs.
ReplyDeleteI’m featuring your post this week at the Sunday Sunshine Blog Hop!
If you came by earlier, the blog hop was messed up, but it’s up and running now!
Blessings,
Laurie