{"id":2523,"date":"2022-01-06T08:16:28","date_gmt":"2022-01-06T08:16:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gardendad.co.uk\/?p=2523"},"modified":"2022-06-03T16:26:38","modified_gmt":"2022-06-03T16:26:38","slug":"how-to-get-rid-of-ants-in-your-garden-patio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gardendad.co.uk\/how-to-get-rid-of-ants-in-your-garden-patio\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Get Rid Of Ants In Your Garden Patio?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ants can be a bit of a pain in your garden – especially if they are the biting kind! Another downside to ants in the garden is that they are likely to find their way into the house too. You may be wondering how to get rid of ants in garden patio, and you are certainly not alone.<\/p>\n

I have discovered some of the best and most humane ways of doing this.<\/p>\n

How To Get Rid Of Ants In Garden Patio?<\/h2>\n

\"How<\/p>\n

There are a good many ways that you can get rid of ants in your patio – however many of these involve using poisons which can damage the ecosystem, so I don\u2019t usually recommend these<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There are a great many safe, effective and cheap home remedies that you can use to rid yourself of your ant problem:<\/p>\n

Boiling water<\/h3>\n

Although unpleasant, pouring boiling water on an ants\u2019 nest will kill them quickly, and also remove the possibility of eggs hatching.<\/p>\n

Vinegar<\/h3>\n

Ants really hate vinegar, so mixing a 50:50 solution of vinegar and water, then spraying this on the ants, will effectively get rid of them.<\/p>\n

Cinnamon<\/h3>\n

Inhaling cinnamon will suffocate an ant, so sprinkling it liberally around your patio is a great way to get rid of them.<\/p>\n

Lemon juice<\/h3>\n

This does not kill the ants, but will destroy their scent trails and should mean that they decide to move house!<\/p>\n

Diatomaceous Earth<\/h3>\n

The microscopic sharp edges of this powder, which is made of fossilised phytoplankton, will cause havoc to an ant. Spread this all around your patio for best results.<\/p>\n

Cayenne pepper<\/h3>\n

This fiery substance, along with black pepper, is an ants\u2019 worst nightmare! Spread it all around where you have an ant problem, and watch the problem disappear.<\/p>\n

Why Do I Have Ants On My Patio?<\/h2>\n

Ants are colony insects; they build huge underground nests to house them all and to raise their babies.<\/p>\n

They love soft soil that is dry and well aerated for creating these nests; exactly the type of soil that sits under the patio and in between the cracks.<\/p>\n

Ants also like to keep warm, and the sunlight passing through a concrete patio slab<\/a> is ideal for warming up their nests.<\/p>\n

The patio is often less disturbed than other areas of your garden, such as herb and flower beds, so it is a good choice for a nest if you are an ant!<\/p>\n

Having small, concealed entrances and exits is another reason why ants favour a patio – they can scurry in and out without becoming a snack for a bird.<\/p>\n

The patio is often close to the house, which is a great source of food for a hungry ant – if you ignore them on the patio then chances are they will move into your house next!<\/p>\n

How Do I Get Rid Of Ants In My Patio Cracks?<\/h2>\n

Ants can be a tricky problem to get rid of once they have become established – the best bet is to make sure they don\u2019t get set up in the first place.<\/p>\n

Once you have identified an ant problem, you should get on top of it as quickly as you can, before it becomes a bigger problem:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • Sealing up all the gaps<\/strong> is the best option you can use for making sure that ants don\u2019t set up home on your patio. However, this isn\u2019t always possible, especially if some of the stones have broken over the years!<\/li>\n
  • Use a deterrent<\/strong>. This should be one that will either kill the ants, or make their conditions so uncomfortable that they decide to leave. Insecticides are not the best bet – they may be fast and effective, but they can be very harmful for other plants, insects and the environments<\/li>\n
  • Kill them at the source<\/strong>. Pouring boiling water directly onto the ants\u2019 nest, or using vinegar or salt, will kill the ants quickly and relatively painlessly. There are a lot of home remedies for getting rid of ants, many of which that you can find lying about in your kitchen cupboards.<\/li>\n
  • Plant mint<\/strong>. Ants are not keen on the smell of mint, so having a few plants dotted about the place is a good way of deterring them from setting up home in your patio. If you can, plant\u00a0 mint all around where the patio will be, or retro plant it if the patio is already laid.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    How Does Vinegar Get Rid Of Ants Outside?<\/h2>\n

    Vinegar will not only kill ants when it is applied directly onto them, but it can also make life very uncomfortable for them.<\/p>\n

    The strong smell of the vinegar interferes with the ants\u2019 pheromones, and can remove their trails so they get disoriented and lost.<\/p>\n

    Vinegar can deal with an ant problem very quickly – it may take a few applications but you can be sure that this store cupboard staple will rid you of creepy crawlies!<\/p>\n

    This video will tell you a little bit more about the effect of vinegar on ants, and the best way to use it to deal with your ant problem:<\/p>\n