Advice please!
New plunge bench and heated cable in sand has been inundated with ants.
They seem to be all over the place. What can I do to dissuade them?
Would Vaseline or something similar, smeared round the legs of the stand
help?

Friends says nippon does work but then ultimately stops working for some
reason.

Janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

In article ,
Janet Tweedy writes:
|
| New plunge bench and heated cable in sand has been inundated with ants.
| They seem to be all over the place. What can I do to dissuade them?
| Would Vaseline or something similar, smeared round the legs of the stand
| help?

Keeping it damper would, too.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article , Nick Maclaren
writes

In article ,
Janet Tweedy writes:
|
| New plunge bench and heated cable in sand has been inundated with ants.
| They seem to be all over the place. What can I do to dissuade them?
| Would Vaseline or something similar, smeared round the legs of the stand
| help?

Keeping it damper would, too.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Well it's fairly damp at the moment Nick, and excess water will drain
out anyway. I have it set to 70 degrees and on the bottom shelf I have a
heated tray type Thingy which takes four full sized seed trays. The ants
are all over that as well. As I don't have anything actually growing in
the sand could I drench the sand with something?

janet

--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

In article ,
Janet Tweedy writes:
|
| Well it's fairly damp at the moment Nick, and excess water will drain
| out anyway. I have it set to 70 degrees and on the bottom shelf I have a
| heated tray type Thingy which takes four full sized seed trays. The ants
| are all over that as well. As I don't have anything actually growing in
| the sand could I drench the sand with something?

Well, probably. By why not ignore them? They don't do any harm
to plants, after all.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

"Janet Tweedy" wrote in message
...

Advice please!
New plunge bench and heated cable in sand has been inundated with ants.
They seem to be all over the place. What can I do to dissuade them? Would
Vaseline or something similar, smeared round the legs of the stand help?

Friends says nippon does work but then ultimately stops working for some
reason.

Janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk
My standard treatment for ants is borax in sugar in a small tin....the
scavenger ants take the sugar/borax mix back to the nest and destroys
'em....HW

In article , Nick Maclaren
writes

Well, probably. By why not ignore them? They don't do any harm
to plants, after all.


Their tunnelling won't harm seedling roots or cuttings then?

--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

In article , Janet Tweedy writes:
| In article , Nick Maclaren
| writes
|
| Well, probably. By why not ignore them? They don't do any harm
| to plants, after all.
|
|
| Their tunnelling won't harm seedling roots or cuttings then?

Not much, and they are very unlikely to start tunnelling in a
damp substrate, which was my point about dampness.

Ants wandering over over plants are more likely to do good than
harm.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Janet Tweedy Apr 6, 1:19 am show options

Newsgroups: uk.rec.gardening
From: Janet Tweedy - Find messages by this
author
Date: Wed, 6 Apr 2005 09:19:19 +0100
Local: Wed, Apr 6 2005 1:19 am
Subject: ants in plunge bench
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Advice please!
New plunge bench and heated cable in sand has been inundated with
ants.
They seem to be all over the place. What can I do to dissuade them?
Would Vaseline or something similar, smeared round the legs of the
stand
help?

If the bench is completely free standing, put each leg into an empty
tin, stand this tin in a larger tin and fill the space with water with
a drop of washing up liquid in it. Any ants trying to skate over the
surface will get a nasty surprise, then see their life flash before
them. To finish of the ants already in situe, a couple of kettlesful of
boiling water should do the trick. If they try to sneak back in via the
electricity cable, tie a rag soaked in insect spray around it. I learnt
the rag trick while trying to stop ants making a motorway of my washing
line in preference to struggling over the gravel.

Jo
On a sunny southern slope in Spain

In article .com,
Totty writes

If the bench is completely free standing, put each leg into an empty
tin, stand this tin in a larger tin and fill the space with water with
a drop of washing up liquid in it.


Ah, did think of this but unfortunately said propagator bench now weighs
about 100 tons with sand in the top!


If they try to sneak back in via the
electricity cable, tie a rag soaked in insect spray around it. I learnt
the rag trick while trying to stop ants making a motorway of my washing
line in preference to struggling over the gravel.

Jo
On a sunny southern slope in Spain

Might try the last idea, as I really think there are too many ants
running around in amongst my cuttings!
janet
--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk

"Janet Tweedy" wrote in message
news
In article , Nick Maclaren
writes

In article ,
Janet Tweedy writes:
|
| New plunge bench and heated cable in sand has been inundated with
ants.
| They seem to be all over the place. What can I do to dissuade them?
| Would Vaseline or something similar, smeared round the legs of the
stand
| help?

Keeping it damper would, too.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

Well it's fairly damp at the moment Nick, and excess water will drain
out anyway. I have it set to 70 degrees and on the bottom shelf I have a
heated tray type Thingy which takes four full sized seed trays. The ants
are all over that as well. As I don't have anything actually growing in
the sand could I drench the sand with something?

janet

--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk
I have always found the various powder type insecticides good for ants, but
I have never had them in a propagator! They must have thought it was
Christmas when you installed central heating for them :~)

--
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National Plant Collection of Clematis viticella (cvs)

"Charlie Pridham" wrote
snipped
I have always found the various powder type insecticides good for ants, but
I have never had them in a propagator! They must have thought it was
Christmas when you installed central heating for them :~)
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.

I've had them in my potting-up table. This is outside and has a lid to keep the
rain of. They obviously thought it was heaven sent!!

I tipped them and the earth out onto the garden as I did not want to have to
touch them while potting up etc.

I do seem to feel that they undermine plants by tunnelling through the roots.

Jenny

In article , Charlie
Pridham writes

I have always found the various powder type insecticides good for ants, but
I have never had them in a propagator! They must have thought it was
Christmas when you installed central heating for them :~)



That was my worry as well!

--
Janet Tweedy
Dalmatian Telegraph
http://www.lancedal.demon.co.uk