Ants can be particularly hard to get rid of—especially once they’re invading full-force. This week, I found out we were stricken with the little critters when I left some shredded coconut and some tea in a box…on the floor…Yikes!
All I could see was a long line of ants, proudly marching their way into our new apartment! The first thing I wanted to do was run and seek out the largest bottle of bleach that I could find. Not the best idea… After a few deep breaths, I thought it out and decided that a non-toxic blend would be a better idea…something that would make the ants feel more like they were entering a stream room rather than a death bath… I just wasn’t quite sure WHAT I should use.
Like most people, I contacted the lovely internet. Plenty magazine’s comprehensive look at Nontoxic Ant Antidotes was a wonderful resource. Black pepper, cayenne pepper, and chalkboard chalk are all good ant deterrents… and Dr. Bronner’s peppermint castile soap. Yeah! ANOTHER use for Dr. Bronners! I checked my cabinets but all I had was Dr. Bronners Rose flavor along with a nice Basil scented Mrs. Meyers cleaner. Even though both of those options are non-toxic, the flavors just SHOUT instant ant party.
Another option was to make an ant motel with Borax, a solution of sugar dissolved in water, some Kleenex or toilet paper, and glass jars. You can mix equal amounts of Borax and sugar water and pour over a crumpled tissue in the bottom of the glass, cover container and poke holes (i.e., ant doors) in lid.
I decided to try the black pepper since that was to most convenient option at this time. So far so good. Only time will tell…
Tagged: Ant party, ant pests, ant repellent, marching ants, non-toxic ant
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I hate ants! My house usually gets hit once or twice per year by an invasion. Since we have a dog and two cats it’s dangerous to spray stinky, poisonous ant killer chemicals everywhere.
My solution: sprinkle some Cream of Wheat around the ant trails (especially if you can find where they’re coming into the house from). The ants will mistake the Cream of Wheat for food and usually carry it back to their nest to feed their troops and hopefully their queen. The Cream of Wheat expands when it gets wet, and so the ants’ stomachs will explode once they eat it! Wonderful! A little sadistic and cruel, but I really hate ants!!