Fire Ants in Flower Pots
- If you are wondering if the pests in your flower pot are fire ants, you may be dealing with two species. Red imported fire ants range in size between 1/16 and 1/5 inch long. They have a red head and thorax and a dark brown abdomen. Southern fire ants are bigger and up to 1/4 inch long. Their abdomens are black, their head and thorax are amber-colored and you may notice golden hairs on their bod.
- To kill fire ants found in your flower pot, take the pot outdoors and soak it in a bucket with a natural insecticidal soap for 20 minutes. The recipe for the soap is 2 tbsp. of dish detergent per 1 quart of water. The University of California recommends submerging the pot so that the soil's surface is just below water level. Sprinkling diatomaceous earth around the pot may also prove useful. The particles of diatomaceous earth scratch the fire ants' bodies and cause them to dehydrate and die. As a temporary prevention method, sprinkling 1/2 inch of worm castings on top of your flower's topsoil will deter fire ants. This will not kill the ants but it will repel them for a couple of weeks.
- To permanently get rid of fire ants and stop them from invading your flower pots, you need to destroy the source -- the ant hill. Fire ants may construct an ant hill under rocks, in wood or in the soil. Either a bucket of boiling water or soapy water may prove effective, although you may have to repeat this method three or four times to kill the entire colony. Quietly sneak up to the ant hill so as to not disturb the ants until you are ready to pour the liquid. Disturb the hill with a stick and, when you see ants running toward the surface, pour the liquid quickly, but carefully, on top.
- If your own control methods are not successful and fire ants are running rampant in and outside your home, you may have to contact a professional pest exterminator. Check to see what companies are available as far as those that use chemical versus organic treatment methods.