Ants in Your Plants
With summer around the corner and school coming to a close, we all look forward to another summer full of lake time, sunshine, warm weather, vacations, and ants! Ants? Ants!
Ants seem to be throwing a tANTrum this time of year. Whether they’re in your pANTry or in your plANTs, they are unpleasANT, defiANT, significANT and substANTial. If you’re fed up with failed home remedies, the professionals at Hopper Termite & Pest can provide the advANTage you need.
Unwanted
While we all enjoy many things in summer, one of the not-so-enjoyable things is pests! We aren’t the only creatures looking forward to that sunshine and fun. Once these unwanted guests have invaded your life, it can be very difficult to get rid of them – and will most likely lead you to need pest control. If you are fortunate and haven’t been visited by these pesky house guests yet, then your best option is preventative pest control. You will want to take all the steps you can to make sure you aren’t providing an appealing habitat for these insects.
Vigilant
When it comes to your home there are some small and easy steps that go a long way to make sure ants don’t feel welcome. While a clean house may be inviting to your family and friends, it is not so inviting to ants. Taking out your trash regularly and making sure you clean up spills and crumbs will help make sure you aren’t providing them with an easy food source. Take particular care not to leave sticky, sugary messes around. A good meal will keep them coming back for more! Also storing your food in airtight containers is a great way to protect your food.
Abundant
In their Pulitzer-prize winning book The Ants, researchers Bert Hölldobler and Edward O. Wilson estimate that there are upwards of 10,000,000,000,000,000 individual ants alive on Earth at any given time. The ant population seems to be growing by leaps and bounds. If you find yourself needing ant control (or any pest control for that matter), the best thing you can do is take action now! Don’t put off doing something about it. Keep in mind there are several different kinds of ants in our area.
Tiny Black Ant problems can seem pretty harmless and you may be tempted to hold off on seeking help, but don’t. These tiny Black Ants, also known as the Odorous House Ant, may seem pesky and harmless, but if you let the problem go they can be very, very difficult to get rid of. Carpenter Ant problems can be a big deal! They are more than just a nuisance. These ants are highly destructive and can cause structural damage along the same lines as termites if left unattended. You can usually identify a Carpenter Ant by its larger black body. They range in size from 1/4 of an inch to an inch long. These ants colonize and carve galleries – or pathways – into the wood to move their nest around. This can cause major damage to your home. Keep your eyes open for moist or damp areas for these guys. Areas like windows and decks may be where they pop up. Fire Ant problems are the most painful (literally) of the bunch! Fire Ants are small ranging from about 1/8 of an inch to 1/4 of an inch and are a coppery red color. They are also very aggressive and like to bite! This variety of ant is found mostly outside, but they will move indoors sometimes during hot, dry weather. That kind of weather is not uncommon in this area in the late spring and summer. These mean little pests are known for their sting – and one ant can sting several times leaving behind red welts on the skin. If you have Fire Ants, wiping out their whole colony, including the queen, is required.
Antidote
If ants haven’t made their way into your house but you have seen them outside, you are probably wondering how to get rid of ants in your yard. A couple of steps you can take to make your yard less inviting would be to make sure you clean up any fallen tree branches and other moist decaying wood. Also, be sure to store firewood up off the ground if possible. Another easy thing you can do on the outside is to make sure you keep bushes, shrubs, and tree branches from touching your house by trimming them back. If not, they can provide nice little bridges directly into your home.
The Advantage Guarantee
The best thing you can do if you are dealing with any sort of ant problem is to give Hopper Termite & Pest a call. While over-the-counter, do-it-yourself treatments may be appealing, you want to make sure you get the results you need in a safe, and timely fashion. Guaranteed! A licensed, professional pest control service is your best bet to rid yourself of unwanted guests. Hopper has a pest control plan to suit every budget. Give them a call and get those ants out of your plants today!
