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Little Blank Ants

Ant Invasion

Kill the Ants!

All-Natural Ant Repellent

Ant Invasion!

Little black ants used to make a yearly invasion at one spot in the house like the front door. I'd suck them up in the vacuum and throw some borax around the door and we were done. But not this year! First they were at the back door and then the front door! Now they are coming into the house by the front door through the cracks in the wood floor. Nothing has worked to get rid of them. With pets, little kids and a teenager in the house, clean floors are a five-minute memory. At least the kids kill them now instead of playing with them. Any family friendly ideas?
MarthaMFI

Use Oatmeal to Kill Ants

Oatmeal! Sprinkle dry oatmeal where you see ants. The workers take the oatmeal back to the queen. Ants can't digest oats and they die.
Connie

Repel Ants with Cinnamon

The best solution for ants is to sprinkle cinnamon where the ants have their run. Ants hate cinnamon and will avoid it at all cost.
Annemarie

Harmful to Ants … Not to Children and Pets

I read somewhere that putting cornmeal around gets rid of ants. They can't digest it, and it kills them. Also, it is not harmful to children or animals.
Gloria

Serve Ants a Little Lemon

I have had great success keeping the ants from invading my house by using lemon juice. I used the lemon juice from a bottle, and the store brand worked just fine.

The ants come in through the kitchen window over the sink. I used a paint brush and painted lemon juice on the woodwork, especially where the ant trail was. It doesn't kill them, but it destroys their sweet trail, which they leave wherever they go. It is sort of like the trail of crumbs left by Hansel and Gretel. They didn't know how to get home, and no other ant would follow them inside.

Another episode I had was when I put a large bakery cake in the kitchen at my church several days before our event. I discovered ants in a large formation, heading toward my cake. We had a stainless steel countertop on which I put the cake in its box, set up on jar lids to get a space under the box. Then, I put a liberal amount of lemon juice on the stainless steel counter under and around the box. It kept the ants out of my cake for a couple of days. I just had to replenish the juice as it dried out. Maybe that wouldn't have been necessary, but I was taking no chances.

Finally, to keep ants from soiling my hummingbird feeder, I have used citrus oil, or "oil of citron," to foil the little creatures. Using a cotton ball wet with the oil, I smear it on the metal crook that supports the bird feeder, the wire that hangs it, and the top of the feeder itself. Also, I have smeared the citrus oil on the post of another bird feeder support. I didn't know how it would work, as it was made of wood. It worked fine. This is available in the spices and herbs section of baking supplies at your store or at a food co-op that sells bulk herbs and spices. The co-op usually has quite a wide variety.
Jean

Keep Bushes and Black Ants Under Control

We had ants every spring in our kitchen. The exterminator told us to trim back any and all trees and bushes that were in actual contact with the house, as ants will crawl in via branches. We did that, and no more ants!
JM

Establish a Vinegar Barrier for Ants

I have found that vinegar seems to create a barrier for ants. Just spread some across the threshold and they don't seem to cross.
Nancy in NY

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