Ants in Trees: [Causes and Solutions]
One of the most abundant insects in gardens are ants.
Their mere presence is not harmful to crops , on the contrary, they generate a series of functions that are beneficial to the entire ecosystem.
Within these are, for example, the cleaning they carry out of the land of other insects that have fallen dead.They are also helpful for incorporating air into the soil, which greatly improves its structure for planting.
But the truth is that when they attack trees, they can cause considerable damage, especially because they work together with other pests.If you want to know how to avoid ants in a tree using from simple homemade methods to more advanced ones, don’t miss a single line of this post.
Why do ants affect trees?
One of the most frequent reasons that lead ants to attack trees has to do with the presence of another insect , generally the aphid.
This happens because the aphid is able to consume the internal sap of the plants, which makes them produce a molasses.
And, this molasses is pleasant for the ants to consume, so they remain on the plants due to the presence of the former.
However, the presence of ants is not always a sign that damage to plants will occur because they also act in pollination processes . In addition, they often climb trees on some occasions with the sole purpose of obtaining water for their consumption.
In neither of these last two cases are they harmful to crops.Actually, you should take action only if you notice that the plant begins to pale and show signs of damage to its structure or vitality.
How can we prevent ants from infesting our trees?
There are many useful tools to get ants to leave trees, for example organic products sold in agricultural stores.But there are also homemade actions that are quite easy and simple to implement as soon as we notice negative changes.
Lemon
The smell of lemon is very unpleasant for ants, preventing them from maintaining routes where it is.
For this reason, a good plan is to apply a layer of lemon juice on the trunk of the trees , so that the ants do not find a way to climb.
insecticides
For ants alone, this method may not be necessary, but when aphids also exist, its use becomes almost mandatory.
The important thing here, especially in the case of fruit trees, is to choose an ecological insecticide that does not exert chemical damage on the crops.
potassium soap
Potassium soap is an element that allows plants to be cleaned of the presence of certain insects, such as aphids.
If the tree has ants due to their presence, it is best to prepare a mixture of soap and water and wash the entire structure with plenty of liquid.
This will allow the insects to drown and not continue to damage the crop.
neem oil
Neem oil is another of the natural products that offers the most effectiveness to treat pests in crops.
In the case of ants, this will be used when you see that they have their nests at the base of the tree.
To be effective, all you have to do is spray them with sprayed oil and wait for it to do its job.
agricultural lime
The use of agricultural lime is an economical, fast and effective method, but it ends up damaging the natural beauty of the plants on an aesthetic level.To avoid ants in trees, it will be necessary to cover the lower part of the trunk with lime because this will prevent the ants from circulating at will.
Block the rise with cardboard
It is a simple method but it also harms the tree aesthetically. The idea is to create a barrier to prevent the ants from climbing up.
To do this, you will only need a piece of cardboard from which the center will be removed according to the diameter of the tree trunk.
Next, you will have to cover the trunk with the cardboard and use school glue to fix it in position and cover any holes that may have remained.This will break communication pathways from the bottom to the top, preventing ants from climbing up.
Strips with glue
This is an emergency action that you can implement in certain cases, but in the end it does not represent a definitive solution.
The idea is to place sticky strips around the trunk, thus making the ants adhere to them and prevent them from climbing the tree.
Remember that, in any case, the first thing is to check the conditions of the ants on the tree, because if they are not being harmful, there is no need to worry.
