Everyone knows that ants really dobeneficial insectsand of course also benefit our garden in many ways. But they become a nuisance when they settle and stay where they are not wanted. One of these areas is the terrace. If you have noticed an increase in ants on your patio, you are probably looking for a way to get rid of them. But what helps against ants? If you want to get rid of ants from the terrace, are simple home remedies against ants effective enough? We have a few tips you can try.
Get rid of ants from the terrace – how about relocating them?
There are certainly numerous chemical agents that you can use to destroy ant colonies. However, if you want to get rid of the ants without killing them, you can try other methods first. Relocating the colony is one variant. But how should this “million-dollar household” be relocated? What seems like an impossible task is actually not that difficult to accomplish: Take an empty clay flower pot. To make it as odorless as possible, clean it thoroughly. Then you can use it to drive the ants away from the terrace or give them a new place to live.
For this you need newspaper or other paper that you smear with sugary foods. Sugar syrup and jam, for example, are very suitable. Alsoprotein-containing foodsants really like it. You then crumple up the smeared paper and use it to stuff the bucket. The contents should not slip out when you turn the pot over. To drive the ants away from the terrace, place the flower pot upside down near the ant hole or ant trail and leave it like that for one to two weeks. During this time, the ants should nest in the flower pot, so you can easily release them somewhere far away.
Naturally get rid of ants with herbal remedies
You can also fight ants with fragrant plants, herbs and spices. This is another way you can get rid of ants without causing them any harm. Since the insects communicate with each other through scents, they are particularly sensitive to them. Scents also override the scents dispersed by the ants to mark their paths, so you'll naturally scare them away this way. But which scents can you use to drive ants away from the terrace?
- Eucalyptus
- Farnkraut
- cloves
- chervil
- Garlic
- Lavender
- laurel
- marjoram
- peppermint
- Rosemary
- Teebaumöl
- Thymian
- Centaury
- juniper
- Cinnamon
- Citrus herb
You can plant the herbs mentioned around the terrace if you plan to cultivate spices near the terrace anyway. In this way they have a preventative effect against the pests. The plants act as a repellent against ants that are already present if you place them on or along the ant trails. Find out how you can get rid of flies with plantsin this article.
Use vinegar against ants
We humans are also not particularly enthusiastic about the smell of vinegar. The ants even less so! If you want to get rid of ants from the terrace, it is a great tool. Simply prepare a vinegar solution and spray it on the patio. The insects will disappear and the smell of vinegar outdoors will disappear very soon. Vinegar is good for a reasona popular home remedy!
What to do against ants – chalk
Chalk is a home remedy for these insects that everyone has probably heard of. Although it cannot directly drive ants away from the terrace, you can use it to redirect their paths. This is because the chalk has alkaline components and this means that insects cannot cross it.
Copper scares away insects
Let's go back to unwanted smells: Ants can't stand the smell of copper. If you know where the ant nests are, you can use this precious metal to get rid of ants from the terrace and at the same time get rid of ants in the garden. Small strips are suitable, but also coins that you simply insert into the openings of the ant hole.
Ant colony in a flower pot?
Don't be upset if you suddenly find ants in the flower pot on the terrace. You can get rid of these really quickly. The more often you put the pot under water, the faster the little pests will find a new home.
Grease and Vaseline
These are perfect hurdles for the insects. With their help, ants can be quickly driven away from the terrace. To do this, simply build hurdles where the ants usually walk. They can't cross grease or Vaseline and will quickly find another place.
Kill ants on the terrace with cucumber
How this delicious and healthy vegetable can work against ants? On the one hand, they don't like the smell and taste, and on the other hand, the cucumber peel is also poisonous to insects, which is why you should avoid it. So if you have just peeled a cucumber for the salad, you can use the peel straight away and drive ants away from the terrace.
Which you betternotDrive ants away from the terrace
In addition to effective and, above all, environmentally friendly helpers, there are of course also those that are natural but result in the animals' painful death. This includes coffee grounds against ants, but also baking powder against ants. Baking soda, yeast and soap have the same effect in fighting insects and are best avoided. Of course, this also applies to commercially available chemical toxins.
