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Why You Don’t Want Ants in Your Garden or Lawn

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Ants are generally a big nuisance. They get into your sugar bowl; they readily collect where there’s a spattering of juice; and they spoil your favorite desserts. Ants – you really don’t want them inside your home; but what about outdoors? Well, they’re outside, so leave them be, right? If you are an avid gardener, you know that ants are tiny machines of destruction. They can readily destroy your most prized plants and infest your lawn to the point that you can no longer have picnic outdoors or have your kids play in your backyard.

Ants Create Numerous Mounds

So, how can ants wreck your yard? To start with, allowing an ant colony to firmly establish itself in your yard or lawn is not a good idea because these insects can easily overrun your space in a matter of weeks. If you don’t pay attention to your ant problems, you could end up staying indoors all the time. You won’t like to go outside and enjoy your plants because as soon as you step onto your yard, you might accidentally tread on one of their mounds. That’s not a pretty picture, especially if you’ve just disturbed a large group of red fire ants. These kinds of ants won’t just crawl all over you; they’ll bite you – and a fire ant’s sting is painful and very itchy. So, instead of being able to enjoy your garden, you would think twice about venturing outdoors in case you step on one of their mounds. What if you have kids? You certainly wouldn’t want your children playing in a yard crawling with fire ants. In addition to this, mounds are unsightly and they affect plant growth and development.

Ants Sting

As mentioned, ants sting when disturbed. The injury is typically itchy, inflamed and painful. Sometimes, minute pustules or blisters form on the site of the bite. Although ant bites readily resolve in time, some people are hypersensitive. It is also exceedingly rare for fire ants to attack humans. They usually just sting when they are bothered. However, there have been exceptional instances when fire ants have harmed people. Babies, the elderly and incapacitated individuals could be target of ant attacks, particularly if there is an extensive infestation in a specific area.

Ants Could Kill Plants

Are your prized orchids swarming with black ants? Have you noticed that your zinnias are failing to bloom because the buds are teeming with ants? Are your dahlias no longer blooming? Many kinds of ants are attracted to the sweet nectar produced by flowers. Some people say that ants are harmless because they don’t eat flowers. Well, this may not be entirely true. Based on my experience, the black ants that swarmed all over my beautiful ground orchids also brought with them lots of aphids. Ants farm these creatures because they eat the honeydew produced by aphids. Aphids cover stems or leaves, and they deter plants from absorbing sunlight. Black mold also form on the parts that also get coated in honeydew, which further prevents sunlight absorption.

In addition to farming and protecting aphids, ants affect plants’ root systems too. These insects don’t eat roots, but they damage these when they burrow or create tunnels under the ground. Ants’ underground activities pull the soil away from the roots which means that these won’t be able to absorb water well.

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Claire Brent is a freelance blogger who often writes about pest management. She covers many issues, including termite and ant control, diseases caused by insects, green pest control methods, and other pest-related issues. She also provides material for Preventive Pest, a company that provides solutions to difficult pest problems.

4 Crucial Things To Organize Before You Throw The Garden Party Of The Year

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One of the most exciting things you can ever do is throw a garden party for all your friends. It gives you the chance to invite people you don’t get to spend quality time with. Everyone can come together and have a huge celebration. The garden is the obvious place to have it because you don’t want your home destroyed, but at the same time you are never more than 10 meters away from the comfort of your castle. Have a party somewhere else and it doesn’t feel the same. It might be great, but it just won’t feel the same.

The only thing you need to remember is that it has to be well-planned. You can’t just expect everyone to come around and stand about in your garden. If you want it to be amazing there’s some things you need to do and they might need to be done well in advance. You don’t want to run around at the last minute when you should be getting ready to burst open a cold bottle of beer. Grab your pen and paper so you can write these down and get on them straight away. Just don’t be surprised if you’re asked to host a lot more parties in the future.

Book a tent

This one is the most important out of the lot. You definitely can’t expect all your guests to stand outside when it’s raining. Who knows when there will be a downpour at this time of year? If you have a tent erected somewhere in the garden it means you have somewhere to sit if the worst happens. It’s also a good idea to keep the food undercover. If your garden is big it saves you running backwards and forwards to the kitchen all the time. Once you book one they will come and put it up for you before your party starts.

Hire a big barbeque

This is going to depend on how many people will be at the party. If there’s only a few people you might get away with using a small barbecue you have lying around, but if there’s lots of people you don’t want them to go hungry. That’s why you should have a big barbecue and there will always be plenty of food sizzling away. If you wanted to be really fancy you could even hire someone to come out and cook everything for you. Find out the costs and see if it fits into your budget.

Have lots of lighting

People need to see what they’re doing. It’s nice to look someone in the eye when you’re talking to them instead of staring into the pitch black. You have many options to choose from. If there’s lots of trees lying around in your garden you can hang lights from them. There’s also the solar powered LED ones that you can stick into the ground. Just make sure they’ve been set-up for a few days so you know they are working, plus it gives them a chance to absorb some sunlight. Apparently solar powered lights need this. Who knew?

Make sure everything is safe

The final thing you have to do is to make sure everything is safe. There’s also inviting people and buying alcohol, but I’m sure you can manage that. How can you make sure everything is safe? Well start by clearing the garden so people don’t trip up on anything. If you have a swimming pool you should have a rope around it. The last thing you need is someone falling into the water and no-one seeing what happened. Make sure all electrical cables are tucked away and covered. Make sure you do these four things then you can worry about the entertainment.

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David Hall is a home improvement expert and knows how to organize parties properly. If you too are planning to throw a party then do visit www.portablesheltersonline.com for more information.

4 Pests That Damage Ornamental Plants

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All plants including ornamental plants are subjected to destructive insects. This can be a problem especially if you use ornamental plants inside your home for therapeutic and home décor purposes. The only way to deal with such insects is by learning how to identify them and know which type of treatment can be used against them. Always remember that treating a plant early can save it completely compared to delayed treatment. Here are four common pests that are known to damage ornamental plants inside and outside homes.

Aphids

Aphids are known to feed on rose bushes and ornamental plants by sucking them causing the plant leaves to curl, yellow off and then fall off. These insects are identified by their orange to black bodies measuring between 1/16 and 1/8 inch in length. They can often be found living and feeding underneath the leaves and stems of plants. Since aphids can transmit plant diseases, pest control is essential. The presence of ants must be controlled as they help spread aphids since they feed on the excretion. Treating aphid infested plants is easy with the help of insecticidal soap spray which quickly penetrates their soft bodies.

Mealybugs

Identified as small and soft bodied insects that are white and fuzzy, mealybugs can infest an array of plants, mostly located in warm and humid climates. Once they cover a plant stem and excrete honeydew, they can cause the plant to develop sooty mold which is a fungal disease. This can lead to yellowing leaves and stunted growth. Like other plant pests, controlling the insect will also mean having to control the presence of ants on the plant. You can spray insecticidal soap on the plant to get rid of mealybugs or simply introduce ladybugs to control them.

Scale Insects

There are more than 400 species of scale insects in the United States, but there are only two scale types that these insects feature – soft bodied and armored scales. They can be distinguished by their colors which seem to look like all the colors of the rainbow, and they measure between 1/16 and 1/8 inch. Sometimes identifying these insects can be complicated because their body shapes vary from oval to circular and pear shaped to oblong. They damage plants by feeding on the juice of plants which can lead to a growth halt if the infestation is not treated immediately. In order to treat plants infested with scale insects, ants must be controlled because they can carry scale insects onto plants. Plants can also be sprayed with a combination of insecticidal soap spray and canola oil, until all the insects are killed.

Spider Mites

Indoor and outdoor ornamental plants can be attacked by spider mites. They are related to the spider family and so can be identified by their red, yellow, green or brown bodies and the web weaved onto plants which are more noticeable. Spider mites can cause the leaves of plants to become discolored and flecked to almost burned, that then drop off until the entire plant dies. Though insecticides can be used to control this insect, the use of ladybugs and other natural enemies are considered safe, efficient and eco-friendly.

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Valerie Oliver is a freelance writer specializing in natural pest control methods. She regularly contributes articles to http://www.affordablepest.com where reliable and well experienced professionals can be consulted.

How To Detect Infestations In Your Garden

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You will often come across pest infestations in your garden, but mostly when the infestation has become severe. In order to save your garden from severe damage from pests, it is important that you are able to detect the early signs of infestations. It is also important that you are informed about the various pest control methods available to you to control and prevent further pest infestations. This way you will be able to maintain your garden healthily. However, it is essential that you seek professional pest control assistance when you are unable to control the infestation in your garden to avoid the pests from invading your home.

How To Detect Infestations

The only way you can detect early infestations is when you observe your garden regularly. Always visit your garden and inspect all your plants. Be sure to inspect the stems and the undersides of the leaves as this is where pest activity usually occurs and where most of the damages can be found. Here are a few tips for you to understand the different signs of pest infestation:

Wilted Plants

When you find wilted, yellow and warped plants or leaves, this is mostly the sign that aphids have fed on the sap of the plants. You can sometimes still find these insects crawling on the plants along with ants trying to protect the aphids as they harvest the honeydew being produced. However, this type of infestation can also bring about black mold, so you can be sure that they are a problem when you discover your plants covered in black and gray spots. Nevertheless, there is a natural form of pest control to help keep aphids away. All you need to do is grow basil, anise, chives and even garlic surrounding other plants to keep aphids away. Otherwise, you can also soak crushed mint leaves or garlic in water, strain and then have the mixture sprayed on the plants.

Silvery Lines And Damaged Crops

Silvery lines around gardens and damaged lettuce crops indicate that you have slugs and snails living in your garden. These pests are a frustration to any gardener, but since there are various ways to control snails and slugs, all you need is patience and determination. You can locate them hiding under rocks and dispose them, create barriers of copper or eggshells, or have a container buried in the ground filled with beer.

Holes In Plant Leaves

Japanese beetles, caterpillars and cabbage loopers are often the cause of holes in plant leaves. Fortunately, they are easy to detect and control. The beetles tend to feed on plants the entire day without caring about being seen, so all you need to do is pluck them off. Cabbage loopers can be identified by looking out for white eggs that are laid on the top side of leaves. Just like beetles, they can easily be plucked off. If you need to get rid of caterpillars, simply place a potted nasturtium nearby.

Dry Plants

Dry plants are also an indication of mites infestations. Mites are small yellow, red or green spiders that can suck plants just like aphids. Since mites have a preference to infest plants in dry conditions, you can get rid of this pest by soaking the plant with water. You can also combine mild soap and water and mist the plant with the mixture.

Valerie Williams is a freelance writer specializing in natural methods of pest control. She regularly contributes articles to PreventivePestControl.com and other pest control websites.

Rain rain – make my flowers grow

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It’s been raining and raining all day, but hey, you remember that saying – April showers bring May flowers? Well since tomorrow is May … I guess we’ll see if all that rain helps make the plants in my garden and the gardens around me blooms. I’m sure it will.

There’s actually been plenty of flowers around since early March. We had a warm winter and that gave all the plants a head start. My garden is at least a month ahead of itself in growth and I have flowers blooming and plants coming up that I normally don’t see until the end of May! I’ve even had kids stop and try to pick some flowers for teachers on their way to school.

I’m glad that I do have so many flowers blooming in my yard. There’s been some years when things have been very slow to get started. On those years I believe I actually bought flowers and some blooming plants to have in the house just because I was longing for some colour after a long drab winter.

Have you been getting lots of rain in your area? Is it helping the plants grow?

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