# Forum Home Renovation Landscaping, Gardening & Outdoors  Green Ant Invasion!

## renonewbie

I'm looking for some advise to strongly encourage the resident green ants to relocate.  A lot of people are against killing them, and generally I am too, but the proportions are out of control!   
I live in Cairns, and these little buggers are building huge nests in the trees (I've been physically removing these), they are all over the external walls of my house (although not bothering me) but my huge problem is that they are all over the ground. I can not walk to my hose without getting a dozen bites - they're aggressive little b*stards!!!!  I have never seen green ants on the ground in such HUGE numbers over such a large area.  I can't let kids go into my garden due to the ants and my 4 year old nephew is developing a phobia because of his experience with bites.  
I consider myself a bit of a hippy, and prefer to take a natural approach but nothing is working. Time for the big guns (she says typing with 3 bites on her fingers).  Can anyone offer any advice?

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## Moondog55

Small thermo-nuclear devices

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## deltoid

We bought our place a year ago and there were a lot of ants in the backyard. I just bought some of that ant sand from the shops which supposedly works by getting the ants to eat it and then they take it back to the nest and kill others. 
It worked pretty well. You have to keep on top of it though, when they came back I did it again, and then again. 
I don't think I'll ever get rid of them all but it has definitely reduced their numbers. I don't really notice ants in large numbers around the place like I used to. No doubt I'll start to see more now the warmer months are approaching.

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## ringtail

Must be a big wet season coming. Sweet. Green ants eat termites too.

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## renonewbie

I dunno about termites but they sure do like to nibble on humans!  
I reckon they would survive a thermal nuclear attack. 
It has been wetter than usual in Cairns over the past few months, but the ants have been a problem all year (just getting worse).  
Someone mentioned ant powder... The ant I'm talking about is Oecophylla smaragdina, which is green tree ant or weaver ant.  I wouldn't want to adversely affect other animal species on my property and I'm thinking a powder would not work - my ants are on grass, fence, garden, plants, trees...everywhere outside.  I have to come up with something they will take back to the nest. 
I know they serve an ecological purpose... I just want to reduce the numbers somewhat.  I've really noticed an absence of sunbirds nesting this year.  I've seen them in the area - they feed from my flowers, but no nest. I'm guessing the green ants are to blame!

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## Moondog55

One way to aid position control may be to provide aerial walkways between trees, I know that this is done in paw-paw plantations where green ants are used as biological controls on pest species, run lengths of bamboo between trees as they prefer not to come to the ground,  
Try a mixture of soap and hot water around the house to remove their scent trails???

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## renonewbie

Thanks Moondog, I like that idea.  I'll also try the soap and hot water (again) and keep it up every day for a while. Thanks for your suggestion.

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## ringtail

Ahhh, green tree ants. Sorry, I thought you meant the good old green ant that bites ya bum when you are sitting on the lawn

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## jago

Borax and sugar on cotton balls in a jar suspend in tree ...it will take a while.Just dont let the pets of kids near it :2thumbsup:

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## renonewbie

will give this a go and report back. Thanks guys.

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