Your Basic Guide to Get Rid of Ants in Your Yard

The ants move in rows and develop their dirt mounds acting like a landscape of your lawns, including hill forts. Finding them in your yard is not a good thing, claims experts. The ants’ mounds damage the grass and bite small children and pets in the yard. Their presence on the lawns makes you feel to take such action, and we will discuss the ways to get rid of the ants, have a look as under: 

How to get rid of ants in your yard? 

There are several ways of getting rid of ants from your yard; let’s check them one by one: 

Identify Your Ant Species

The first step towards getting rid of ants in your yard is to know which species of ant you have. This is the first step to solving this problem. Different species of ants take a resort in lawns. We find ants to be social insects which live in big colonies. However, they become a nuisance when they start building mounds on your lawn or invade certain spots in your yard. 

Of all the types of species, flying ants are a big nuisance in yards. However, they look similar to flying termites, which confuses many homeowners. It is essential to find the right insect pest, or you might take the wrong course of action, which can lead to problems. The two differ; the flying termite has one pair of wings of equal size, while the flying ants have a large pair of wings. 

Know the type of ants

Knowing the type of ants is simple; all you need to do is to catch this pesky insect in your lawn, check the diagram of the ants with you and compare it. You can easily find the type of ant you have in your yard by checking the diagram. However, two of the most common types are carpenter ants and Argentine ants. 

Some other types of ants that fall in the pests category include pharaoh ants,  pavement ants, two species of fire ants and odorous house ants. Once you find these species, you can use practical management tips to regulate them. To control the carpenter ants, you can trim the tree branches or the affected shrubs. You will find the damp or the woody places where they nest. You have to remove it to treat these affected spots. 

For the Argentine ants, you need to keep your home clean using the sponge and then with ant trails using water once you see them. You have to plug the entry points using caulk or silicone where you can find them with the crevices. Also, using ant balls to treat the entire colony will help. 

Fire ants are special cases 

The majority of pest problems caused in any yard are due to the presence of red fire in it. They disrupt the yards by having mounds. They are seen packing a sting that raises the white pustule that burns badly, giving the species this name. Also, these ants sting at once and remain close to it. 

They habitually climb vertical surfaces and bite in the group by signaling once they sense any danger. They never go away unless you see heavy rainfall bring down the mound to get away with groundwater. As we see them growing, the ants will keep developing the concrete, particularly in sunny areas, to get extra warmth. 

To regulate them, the only best option is to put a large volume of boiling water that can easily reduce their activity. Unfortunately, the satellite mounds close to the original can mound close to the original one in just a few days. Also, there is a two-step approach to treatment. First, you must add the pesticide bait and then require an individual mound treatment. 

Commercial pesticide baits are usually made of soybean oil and oil grits with low-dose ant poison mixed in them. It is considered a low toxic choice for humans, but ants can easily take it back to their mound. It is around 80% effective and takes a few months to accomplish the job. The second step involves hitting the mounds with boiling water or chemical pesticide. 

The DIY Ant Control 

If you want to control ants on your lawn, you can certainly take them up during any free weekend. It is a simple task that any homeowner can manage using a bag of ant killer that can cost you not more than $20 for a lawn of 5000 sq feet. For the small size lawn, it can last for the entire year. 

You may not have any good magic bullet while hiring a professional to help them bring out their expertise and experience in accomplishing the job. They will ensure that you eliminate the ants entirely from your lawn after trying all the treatment options. 

Dealing with Ant Mounds 

As you see the ants building up these mounds, they can make the warm season grass smother, which is not resistant to shades. Fire ants are quick in making strong mounds, which can have an impact on your lawn by giving some spots in your lawn. However, a majority of ant minds will not kill the grass. You can also plan to hit the garden hose by washing them away. 

Applying Insecticide

Once you know that your lawn is pitted with this issue, you have the time to use the big gun having insecticide with the following steps:

• Rake the mound flat using the insecticide
• You can spread the granules over the soil surface with the help of a diluted chemical solution. Once again, rake it gently once you apply it over the affected area. 
• Follow all the instructions and directions by reading the label. 
• If you use granules, you must first irrigate them immediately once the chemical is added to the soil.
• Make sure you keep it away from the small kids or pets who may come in contact with it. 

Calling a professional can help in treating the ant infestations in your yard. They use the approach of spraying the combination of fertilizer-insecticide all over the lawn when required. 

Getting the Ants Permanently

One of the ways to get rid of the ants permanently is through controlling and regulating the art infestation. This is done by finding out and destroying the entire ant colony, the experts. It primarily includes killing the queen and her young. Experts recommend a broadcast bait application through the years in the complete yard for keeping the ants at bay. You can even do this job on free weekends or public holidays claims an expert.

DIY or Call a Professional for Ants control? 

Calling an expert for ant pest control in your yard is always a welcome step. It always has several pros than a few cons. The professionals can treat the ants at an affordable cost with effective results. You can choose annual maintenance contracts for regular treatment, which is affordable in the long term. 

However, opting for a DIY venture can provide an extremely affordable solution. It may save some money, but the result you expect from your efforts may not be at par with your requirements. You may fail to have the expertise, experience, tools, and equipment to address this problem, which is not the case with professionals. 

In conclusion, knocking down the ant colony or addressing the infestation within your yard is tricky. It can keep you on your toes. Regardless of your choice, the result should be complete freedom from the ants. This will further give you a healthy green turf, which you would love to enjoy without risk.