Every spring, for the past five years, I am amazed at the mounds of fire ants that develop in our yard and garden areas. Almost overnight (not really) it just suddenly seems like they are everywhere.
I definitely have a love-hate relationship with fire ants (also known as red imported fire ants – solenopsis invicta). Love and hate are both pretty strong words to associate with fire ants, maybe it should be more “like” and “dislike.”
It is hard to have any nice and tender thoughts about fire ants when a few of them have attached themselves to your ankle or leg, and are stinging away. The fiery pain from the sting is finally reaching your brain and you are swiping them off you. As you hop around, stamping your feet, chances are a few not so pretty words might escape from your lips.
In reality the fire ant bite isn’t what causes the pain, they bite you in order to hang on and get a good grip so they can insert their stinger and get the venom in you…. that is when you start feeling the fire. Unlike the honey bee, the fire ant can sting you repeatedly and then get back to what ever it was they were doing.
I will admit that I have taken great pleasure in wiping out mound after mound of fire ants using a locally made organic product called Anti Fuego that is made by Gardenville. The product is a concentrated mixture of things like molasses and orange oil (and a few other things) and it is designed to drench and conditions mounds and soils….. but it’s main purpose, for me, is to kill fire ants. After all, who wants fire ants around?
Well, I am going to ask you to have an open mind here. If we wipe out all the “bad” insects and bugs there will be nothing for the good guys to eat thus creating an unequal balance in the greater scope of things. I have understood that principle for many years, but fire ants? Come on! Really?
Yes, fire ants do have a purpose in life. That is really hard believe when you are being stung!
So, why would anyone want to keep them around? Fire ants voraciously consume populations of fleas, ticks, termites, cockroaches, chinch bugs, mosquito eggs and larva, scorpions, etc. That seems enough to persuade me to keep them around (within reason!)
I try to peacefully co-exist with them, and that isn’t always easy, but it is worth it for the good work that they do. I will let them do their work as long as they don’t take up residence in the walkways through the yard or in the gardens. It is an ongoing battle. This plan works for us , but that doesn’t mean it will work for others. Fire ants cause severe damage to cattle and wild life, and their mounds can cause terrible damage to farm equipment.
In our yard, a few of the places that the fire ants love to take up residence are in my piles of composted horse manure, dirt/compost piles and under anything that lies on the ground (like a floor mat, garbage can, piece of plywood.) When I am loading my wheelbarrow with manure to take to the garden, I am very aware. When I go to the ranch to pick up piles of manure, I am even more aware. It is really no fun to be an hour from home, standing in a mound of fire ants while loading my truck with manure and have no way to treat the stings.
When a fire ant stings you, you will feel immediate sharp pain that just seems to continue to burn and eventually will start to itch. Within 24 hours a raised white pustule forms and remains for several days. This isn’t an infection, but if you break it open you are increasing your chances of that area becoming infected (fun stuff huh!) People with diabetes or compromised immune systems have the potential for other problems, especially if they have been stung numerous times. While a few strings do not usually constitute a major medical emergency, there is a small percentage of people that develop allergic reactions to fire ant venom. These vary in intensity, but in the most extreme cases even a few stings can result in the life-threatening condition known as anaphylaxis.
I manage to get stung several times a year, usually around 3-7 stings at a time. They are always on my ankles and hands/wrists and are just plain bothersome. For me it is the sting and itch that feels OH SO GOOD when you itch it, but you never get any relief from itching it, just more sting and itch. I have tired several home remedies like baking soda paste, meat tenderizer and clear nail polish with no results of relief what so ever. So far, the only remedy that I have found that gives me any relief at all is Vick Vapor-rub! When I head out to pick up a load of manure or dirt I always make sure I have a jar of Vicks with me. I have the best results if I can get the Vicks on the sting locations immediately; if I wait just 5 minutes I will develop the red swelling bump, pain and itching, granted it is much less that it would be without applying the Vicks. In the photo above, I was stung 2-3 times and there is hardly a mark left because I applied the Vicks immediately!
I would like to work on making my own vapo-rub. Vicks active ingredients are camphor, eucalyptus and menthol and as I think about making my own fire-ant relieving variation, I think about rosemary, thyme and eucalyptus essential oils as a possible combination, maybe even some tea tree.
I don’t see fire ants moving out of our area any time in the near or distant future, so I will try to co-exist semi-peacefully with them and keep a jar of Vicks on hand until I can make up some of my own variation.
Do you have any secrets for dealing with fire ants in your area?
Sincerely, Emily
You can see what else I am up to over at Sincerely, Emily. The topics are varied, as I jump around from gardening to sewing to making bread or lotion and many things in between.
Fire ants are very dangerous as their name. They are great threat for our kids. I do not do any compromise with this dangerous evils. I always try to keep safe distance from it. Thanks Emily for this useful gift.
Oh man. I was only ever stung by fire ants once and that was enough for me. We were visiting my aunt in South Carolina and I was playing in the dunes and sure enough I landed in some fire ants and got two stings on my foot and toe. Unfortunately it turns out that I am somewhat allergic to them and my toe swelled up so big that I couldn’t fit it into my shoe! I also had shooting aches and pains in that leg for days after that, and the swelling took a few days to start to recede. That, my friend, was enough experience for me. I hope I never see another fire ant again! Interestingly enough, I am also allergic to little red and black and bites/stings! We have huge ant hills (seriously huge – like 2′ diameter and a foot high) and when I get bit by even the tiniest little and I break out in a rash and it swells up. It’s not a nice thing for a gardener to have to deal with! 🙂
Wow Emily – those allergic reactions are not fun. Hopefully, there isn’t a next time for you, but if there is, give the Vicks a try and see if that helps at all.
Also see the other tip listed in the comment below (diluted ammonia – 1/3 H2O – 2/3 ammonia) I had forgotten about that home remedy.
We carry a small bottle of diluted ammonia (1/3 H2O- 2/3 ammonia) to dab on the sting. Learned about this in Florida.
THANK YOU! I had completely forgotten about that home remedy. I remember you telling me about it and that you keep it with you when you are working at the botanical gardens and other places you might get into the fire ants. Thanks for sharing it with everyone!!! I am going to mix some of that up and try it next time.
I don’t think we have them here in Tassie but we do have some pretty nasty ants in their place…jack jumpers for one! My grandad had an interesting way to deal with ants. In Western Australia we had enormous ants with huge heads and massive mandibles that if you accidentally found yourself on the receiving end of you would suffer for days (bull ants) and grandad would delight in pouring petrol down their ant hills and setting them alight…even after he almost set the house on fire when a particularly old and well developed mound with many hidden exits exploded (petrol gas is lethal when ignited folks! 😉 ) under the house…he took it all in his stride…the ants outlived him as they do BUT he did keep the population down nicely and our bites were minimal 😉
Hi Fran, oh setting the house on fire – what a picture that is! I have heard about using gasoline/petrol…. I can also see how that would do the trick, granted you don’t hurt yourself or almost burn the house down!
Grandad had some “interesting” techniques. He used to dig 6 ft deep holes to bury his veggie scraps and he used boiling water to kill pill bugs…
Emily,
Here in N.C. the Fire ant’s abound and they are every where, in the garden, The worm beds and all over the yard.
I found a way to kill the whole hill! If you have indoor cats and they use a cat box, you have the best material to eradicate the hills!
When cleaning out the cat box, remove the solid waste and pour the wet litter onto the hills. Cat pee has a lot of ammonia and it is heaver then air and will sink into the hill. It kills the queen and a in a few days the hill will be empty.
The ammonia will dissipate and the litter can then be till or turned under and will help to loosen up the soil.
Tom
Hi Tom, it sounds like you have more fire ants than I do here. You can keep them – please! Thanks for the tip about the wet cat littler. I am going to give that a try.
Emily,
Let mew know how it works for you!
Tom
We don’t fool around with fire ants. One of my sisters is horribly allergic to those buggers. She was stung when 6mos pregnant and it sent her into labor. Her daughter 24 (and healthy) now and when my niece was little we used to treat the stings with thin slices of potato, applied directly onto the bites and secured with an ace bandage. We used the potato like a poultice and always made sure to have one in the fridge. It got to the point that she would come running inside after being bitten and head straight for the fridge to get the potato for us to put on the stings. Thankfully she didn’t develop the allergy her mom did.
As for treating… we use orange oil, but it only make the mound “move” down a few yards…. but that Anti-Fuego, I hear, is amazing. Gotta get some the next time we are out at Gardenville. We are considering getting some Guinea hens for the critter control too.
Simply pour 2 cups of CLUB SODA directly in the center of a fire ant mound. The carbon dioxide in the water is heavier than air and displaces oxygen which suffocates the queen and the other ants. The whole colony will be dead within about two days. Each mound must be treated individually and a one liter bottle of club soda will kill 2 to 3 mounds.
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