I found baby ants crawling on my anthurium 😓 any tips on ...
3ft to light, indirect
8” pot with drainage
Last watered 1 month ago
2
@GiddyGingerroot Welcome to the Greg community! To get rid of sugar ants on an anthurium plant, try a combination of approaches: deny them their food source, clean scent trails, and use natural repellents or baits. You can also directly treat the plant and soil. Elaboration:
1. Deny Food Sources:
Sugar ants are attracted to sweet substances. Clean up any spills or crumbs around your plant, and ensure the plant itself isn't the source of the sweetness (e.g., honeydew from aphids).
2. Clean Scent Trails:
Ants follow scent trails. Use a solution of equal parts white vinegar and water to spray down ant trails and areas where you see them. 3. Natural Repellents:
Cinnamon: Sprinkle cinnamon powder or place cinnamon sticks around the plant and pot, as ants dislike the smell.
Coffee Grounds: Sprinkle used coffee grounds around the plant and pot, as they are also a natural repellent.
4. Ant Baits:
DIY Bait: Mix equal parts sugar and borax (use caution, as borax can be toxic to humans and pets) to create a paste-like bait. Place it in small containers or bottle caps near ant trails. Commercial Baits: Terro and other brands offer ant baits that attract ants to a sweet substance, which they take back to their colony, eventually killing them.
5. Directly Treat the Plant:
Insecticidal Soap: Dilute insecticidal soap (a product designed for pest control) in water and spray it on the leaves and soil.
Drowning: You can try flooding the soil by watering the plant until it's saturated, allowing the water to drain, and repeating this several times.
Repotting: If the infestation is severe, repotting the plant with fresh, clean soil and removing the old soil can help eliminate the ants. Hope this helps, Good luck!!
1. Deny Food Sources:
Sugar ants are attracted to sweet substances. Clean up any spills or crumbs around your plant, and ensure the plant itself isn't the source of the sweetness (e.g., honeydew from aphids).
2. Clean Scent Trails:
Ants follow scent trails. Use a solution of equal parts white vinegar and water to spray down ant trails and areas where you see them. 3. Natural Repellents:
Cinnamon: Sprinkle cinnamon powder or place cinnamon sticks around the plant and pot, as ants dislike the smell.
Coffee Grounds: Sprinkle used coffee grounds around the plant and pot, as they are also a natural repellent.
4. Ant Baits:
DIY Bait: Mix equal parts sugar and borax (use caution, as borax can be toxic to humans and pets) to create a paste-like bait. Place it in small containers or bottle caps near ant trails. Commercial Baits: Terro and other brands offer ant baits that attract ants to a sweet substance, which they take back to their colony, eventually killing them.
5. Directly Treat the Plant:
Insecticidal Soap: Dilute insecticidal soap (a product designed for pest control) in water and spray it on the leaves and soil.
Drowning: You can try flooding the soil by watering the plant until it's saturated, allowing the water to drain, and repeating this several times.
Repotting: If the infestation is severe, repotting the plant with fresh, clean soil and removing the old soil can help eliminate the ants. Hope this helps, Good luck!!
