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Southern WI

I have applied both the Grubex (twice) and the Triazicide (3 times) and I still have ants. I have the Triaz mix according to directions, 0.5 fl oz (1 tablespoon) per gallon. My garden is only 30' x 30'. Yes we've had alot of rain but I have been able to get it on and dry before the rainfall. Do I dare increase the mixture ? Or is there something else I should be using ? I have 1 Lima Plant, some tomatoes (I keep culling them to make room for the pumpkins) and 4 pumpkin plants left (at this time). Thank you for your time, Deb

7/2/2004 7:23:01 AM

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What kind of Ants are they?

99% of the products we use to kill insects are 90%+ effective. But during the active foraging hours, the Ants we see are a very small percentage of the total population.

These are the Male workers. You are probably doing a fine job of killing them. But the Queen never leaves her chambers. Inside the nest, she is sorrounded by a harem of "love males" & an entire posse of "she workers" who also never leave the nest.

We could be completely indiscriminant & thoroughly spray every square inch of a land parcel that included the entire foraging range of land area with a horrible & 100% effective insecticide & kill every male worker there was. Only to have the queen & her harem rebuild the colonies male worker population in several days.

So the key to good control today is to trick the male workers into doing the dirty work themselves.

First we use a bait that is determined by the Ant species & time of year. Example:

continued

7/2/2004 9:24:00 AM

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Carpenter Ants are enticed into taking dry cellulose Ant baits only during those times of the years that dead insects aren't found. So dry granular bait works great fronm the first frost until about the time Aphids arise. Then they turn away from dry baits so we must present them with gels. The gel baits deliver the liquids they so need.

Once we have determined which bait to use, we then need to present it in the correct place. Small sugar ants will readily take Drax Sugar Ant gel so long as it is not allowed to get wet, no contact insecticides cause a repelling action, & it's placed where they can find it.

Now that we have the correct bait & placement are in mind, we select from a myriad of very SLOW acting poisons. They must be slow to kill since the workers are going to bring it back to the nest where the internal workers will prepare the toxic meal for the enitre colony.

Thus very slowly the colony is terminated from within. The few workers who may survive will eventually die in the chaos the reults when the Queen dies.

Hope this help.

Steve

7/2/2004 9:24:12 AM

Southern WI

Thank you, I'll start my ant research. I'm sure if anyone saw me, including my friends, sitting in the garden watching the ants they would be fitting me for a white jacket right about now, LOL deb

7/3/2004 2:14:41 PM

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LOL!

Not to worry. Two things we need.

A picture.

Where & when they leave from. The time they return is also useful.

Ants head out early in the AM. Sunrise or shortly there after. If thats too early (for you), check again at sundown.

7/3/2004 6:36:46 PM