Ants Taking Over Even After Asked Very Politely to Leave

by Andrea Millar — April 8, 2008

I've lived in three different parts of the country, and ants were always a problem to some degree. Sometimes it was because somebody left something out--once, a single orange M&M spelled a 12-foot-long concession-stand line in my kitchen--but sometimes it was for no discernable reason at all that we had little wiggling trails everywhere.

In my more oblivious times, I sprayed with Raid, wearing a handkerchief with Wagner playing in my head. These days, I tell myself I'm better because I wipe them up with a soapy sponge. Even though Raid's active ingredient is reported to degrade fairly quickly with no harmful effects on people or birds, I figure that's still nasty chemicals I don't want around. Many people recommend borax as an ideal ant poison, but even it has certain toxicity attributes for amphibians, plankton, and humans. Mining it from lake beds doesn't seem very cool either.

So, while I feel slightly greener with my phosphate-free dish soap-soaked rag, I wonder if I could eliminate killing the ants altogether? I figure, if I'm going to kill something, I should eat it. And I haven't eaten ants since I was 6. Too spicy. However, research indicates that besides being a little gross to behold, ants are actual disease vectors--kicking them out of the kitchen is probably the right instinct.

Thanks to the Web site beyondpesticides.org, somebody has put together valuable information about finding the right company for the job, if you're looking to go that route. Of course, there are also at-home solutions to ants. These range from spreading tomato leaves, to sprinkling cinnamon or coffee grounds, to dousing things with citrus, to strewing herbs like mint and lavender. I like the coffee ground idea...too bad I doubt it'll keep larger, more humanoid pests out of my food supply.