Four Organic Ways to Kill Ants

It could happen to anyone. Maybe you leave some sticky black cherries out. A bit too long. And maybe you let one uninvited guest stay. Next thing you know, all his freeloading friends are sucking down the honey bear, tramping off with this morning's English muffin crumbs, and scouting out the dishwasher. So you get a little revenge in the jug of maple syrup -- a death trap for the greedy -- but clearly, Houston, we've got a problem here.

Before you embark on a killing spree, here are a couple tips for eliminating ants without killing the earth too.

1) Say No to Raid
It says right on the package: "Hazard to humans and domestic animals. Harmful if swallowed. Avoid contact with eyes, skin, and clothing." Do you really want this in your kitchen? And it's a pesticide, easily transferred into our rivers where it kills fish and comes back as contaminated tap water. There's nothing good about this stuff.

2) Remove the Food Source
Yep, send home the caters. When it comes down to it, we're pacifists here. Before any other measures are taken, work for the peaceful resolution: Dump the trash, wipe down counters, tape up entrances, and make sure all caps are tightly on. Before you know it, the ants will move on to tastier neighbors.

3) Try the Home Remedy
Slightly sadistic, but cornmeal or grits do some serious damage. Scatter it dry around counter tops. When the ants eat it, and drink a bit of water, it expands and...well you can guess the rest.

4) Choose an Insecticide without the Pesticide
The main ingredient of Terro Liquid Ant bait is Borax, a mineral that kills from the inside slowly, once ingested. Mixed with a sticky syrup, it is much less harmful to household members, when compared to Raid. According to the manufacturer, it "kills ants but will not harm people or pets. If you spill some on your skin there will be no reaction at all. Simply wash with warm water."

Another option is Orange Guard, which contains orange peel extract that destroys the wax coating of a insect's respiratory system or causes suffocation, when applied directly.

Other tips: Spray an organic repellent around doors and windows. Wipe down surfaces with a mixture of water and vinegar or water and lemon.

How do you combat ants? Comment below!

More From Mairi Beautyman on Huffington Post
::Two Uncomplicated Reasons to Choose Organic Eggs and Milk
::Do you Really Need a Dryer?

More Pest Control Tips from TreeHugger
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::Lavender Sachets as Moth Repellant
::Eco-Tip: How to Get Rid of Insects? Bats!

Photos from top: Nick Koudis/Getty Images; Paul Roux/istockphoto.

Comments

[AninditaDey]

How about using neem oil at the entry point; it acts as a repellent.

[lapoutlander]

baking soda is the favorite round here. You add some icing sugar so they will ingest it. Imagine taking alka-seltzer if you could not burb nor fa-rt. Must be painful, cruel and unusual. Don't let SCOTUS know.

[noneIn2008]

Why is killing ants, not killing the earth? What gives us more right to the earth than the ants?

[CVale]

I don't kill ants unless I find them in my house. Most other insects I find in the house I'll take outside and release; crickets, moths, june bugs. I even let some spiders alone when in the house. Some insects, like ants, don't share a living space well. They take over. There's no reasoning with them. I'm all for green. I'm a tree hugger and cringe everytime I hear a chainsaw started in my neighborhood. But ants in the house I do not abide.

[joebiz]

In California we have these loathsome Argentinian ants. The small black ants that are in constant search for water, sweets, and or territory. One approach was to ask them, in Spanish, to leave but since they are Argentinian, they took umbrage. So, a good clean way to eliminate them is Pine Sol. The oily substance kills them dead and also disenfects with the scent of a pine forest.

[Wilburrr]

I have never seen (smelled?) a pine forest that smells like Pine-Sol... I hope I never do! We have a favorite Chinese Restaurant in town, but you have to finish eating before 9 PM because that is the time they start cleaning the floors with the stuff.

[truthynesslover]

Oil of pepprtmint is also very effective.When I lived in california ants were a constant problem so I made a spray of peppermint,I would spray around widows counter fops and light sockets.They hate the smell and stay away.

[Wilburrr]

Magnifying glass and a sunny day! (Slow, but effective.)

Sometimes pesticides, properly applied and judiciously used, are appropriate. I have a container of Amdro that I resort to only after months of frustration. Half a teaspoon delivered to the nest opening kills the entire colony. Mostly we just let them run around and enjoy themselves.

By the way, the absolute best way to clean an animal skeleton for a school science project is to place the bones over a colony of ants. Small bones need to be protected to they are not carried away.

[Cathexis]

Anyone have an organic/pesticide-free remedy for japanese beetles? Every year our young peach & plum trees get ravaged.

[Wilburrr]

Japanese beetles used to ravage our roses when I was a kid. Seems that mom would put out cups of apple cider vinegar which attracted them very well but my memory may be failing me here... that was 50 years ago. :)

[sowhatdemos]

We have discovered a cure for mosquitos.Buy Listerine or a knockoff brand. You want the old time stinky antiseptic. Fill a spray bottle with it, full strength and spray it in the air and you can use it on your skin. It lasts about an hour and it's not a pesticide.

[truthynesslover]

Soak some chewing tobacco in a gallon jug over night , Then combined with some organic liquid dish soap in your sprayer. they hate the taste of the tobacco and the soap fills them with bubbles.It works for me.

[Wilburrr]

Thanks.... but I think I'd rather have the mosquitoes.

[ojorae]

we love terro!! borax their asses back to the stone age. but in order for it to be truly effective you have to be diligent with it's use.

[maddie0001]

You know, you can buy borax at the supermarket. Look for "Twenty Mule Team" in the laundry detergent ailse. It's cheaper than the stuff recommended here.

http://www.20muleteamlaundry.com/ (for a picture of it) and http://www.simplegiftsfarm.com/natural-ant-control.html

[ThatsNotFunny]

How about roaches?

[Wilburrr]

borax works on roaches... and try boric acid. It's a white, crystalline powder that messes up the wax coat on the cockroach shell and the little buggers can't regulate their water. There are newer, high tech ways to deal with roaches, too. Some products eliminate their ability to reproduce by imitating cockroach hormones. Read labels!

[NYCBear]

Nope, roaches don't kill ants. You must be thinking of anteaters.