How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

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omph
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How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by omph »

I have hoards of ants removing all the sand in between my pavers (brick walkway). No matter how much sand I sweep back in, they just remove again (I think there are multiple nests underground). Is there something I can put in the cracks besides sand that would deter them? The reason this is a problem is because the bricks get wobbly without sand in between them (it locks in pavers in place). I don't want to use concrete or anything permanent. The reason I got pavers in the first place is we have earthquakes occasionally and it's easier to replace bricks that repair broken slabs of concrete. thx!
matthuang
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by matthuang »

if they are underground that's hard. Because the one that go up is usually worker ant, and the Queen underground making colony
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SkyFox
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by SkyFox »

omph wrote: Wed Jun 22, 2022 4:46 am I have hoards of ants removing all the sand in between my pavers (brick walkway). No matter how much sand I sweep back in, they just remove again (I think there are multiple nests underground). Is there something I can put in the cracks besides sand that would deter them? The reason this is a problem is because the bricks get wobbly without sand in between them (it locks in pavers in place). I don't want to use concrete or anything permanent. The reason I got pavers in the first place is we have earthquakes occasionally and it's easier to replace bricks that repair broken slabs of concrete. thx!
I currently have a mice problem, which I refuse to call an exterminator for. What I've found that works is to buy cayenne pepper powder and sprinkle it where you don't want them to go. Apparently, this also works for ants. Give that a try and see how it works.
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by pemachophel »

When ants, cockroaches, mice, rats, etc. infest our houses, temples, businesses, etc., karmically it is due to our owing them len-chag (a past-life karmic debt). In the past we robbed them of their food, possessions, homes, and life itself. Killing them only makes this debt worse as well as causes further bad karma. To get rid of these vermin, the best way is to pay back one's karmic debt, such as through chu-tor ("water terma"), life release, feeding of ants and other insects with blessed foodstuffs, and even sang, sur, and chod. Dedicate the merit to the intruders and be sure that your aspiration prayers include the wish that, through these means, all past karmic debts are repaid in full. Once the karmic debt is repaid, the vermin will move on automatically. There will no longer be any karmic cause for their causing problems for you. Also pray that, due to this karmic relationship and the merit accumulated, in whatever time and field one achieves perfectly complete, unsurpassed Enlightenment and manifests as a supreme Nirmanakaya, may these sentient beings be born as your fortune-favored students and may too come to Enlightenment through Your teachings and blessings.

Good luck & best wishes.
Pema Chophel པདྨ་ཆོས་འཕེལ
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Kim O'Hara
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Kim O'Hara »

omph wrote: Wed Jun 22, 2022 4:46 am I have hoards of ants removing all the sand in between my pavers (brick walkway). No matter how much sand I sweep back in, they just remove again (I think there are multiple nests underground). Is there something I can put in the cracks besides sand that would deter them? The reason this is a problem is because the bricks get wobbly without sand in between them (it locks in pavers in place). I don't want to use concrete or anything permanent. The reason I got pavers in the first place is we have earthquakes occasionally and it's easier to replace bricks that repair broken slabs of concrete. thx!
You have set yourself an impossible problem, since anything you do which interferes with their chosen activities will harm them to some extent.

Minimal-harm interventions include scattering something they find repellent, like pepper, or blocking their access to the surface. If you don't want to lock the pavers in place with cement, perhaps you could use a flexible caulking compound. If I was going to do that, I would use a clear one because white or black will show up too much, and I would do a small area first.

:namaste:
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Dorje Shedrub
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Dorje Shedrub »

Build the ants a palace with food, water, everything they need.
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🙏🌺🙏 Chögyal Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by muni »

A cinnamon stick, coffee grinds, chili pepper, paprika, cloves, or dried peppermint leaves near the openings will repel ants. You can also squeeze the juice of a lemon at the entry spot and leave the peel there. Planting mint around the foundation of the house will also keep ants away.
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Ayu »

omph wrote: Wed Jun 22, 2022 4:46 am I have hoards of ants removing all the sand in between my pavers (brick walkway). No matter how much sand I sweep back in, they just remove again (I think there are multiple nests underground). Is there something I can put in the cracks besides sand that would deter them? The reason this is a problem is because the bricks get wobbly without sand in between them (it locks in pavers in place). I don't want to use concrete or anything permanent. The reason I got pavers in the first place is we have earthquakes occasionally and it's easier to replace bricks that repair broken slabs of concrete. thx!
I don't believe the ants will destroy your brick walkway.
I can understand, if people do not want to have them in the house, because the house is owned by the human being and not by the ants.
But outside it's a different affair:
The ant population was there long before any human being built a house and a brick walkway. Their rights are older, because
- they and their ancestors have been there before,
- they have to live SOMEWHERE, if they are not allowed to live in your house, and
- they keep the environment clean in their microcosmos.
- They are desperately needed!

Instead of worrying about tiny mountains of sand, you could simply enjoy this diligent hardworking population of very foreign beings. They serve your garden more than they are able to destroy.
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Kim O'Hara
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Kim O'Hara »

:good:

:namaste:
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Ayu
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Ayu »

[I removed the side topic about believing in karma or not.]
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Miorita »

Question:
How do I get rid of the downtown roaches that I brought home with me from jury duty? They multiplied to the point of having a circus number on the kitchen wall despite the poison my brother placed for them. In winter the mouse will be back because outside is cold.

So you say that I should stay and watch these populations migrating from place to place. What if they don't want to leave?
Last edited by Miorita on Sun Jul 31, 2022 6:26 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Kim O'Hara
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Kim O'Hara »

Miorita wrote: Sun Jul 31, 2022 6:20 am What if they don't want to leave?
It is clear by now that people have a wide range of opinions on the question, from the incredibly virtuous and generous but ultimately impractical, to the pragmatically darwinian. In the end, it's all mixed karma and we all make the best choices we can.

:juggling:
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Zhen Li
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Zhen Li »

Miorita wrote: Sun Jul 31, 2022 6:20 amHow do I get rid of the downtown roaches that I brought home with me from jury duty?
This scenario is the most puzzling part of this thread so far.
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Miorita »

Zhen Li wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 3:20 pm
Miorita wrote: Sun Jul 31, 2022 6:20 amHow do I get rid of the downtown roaches that I brought home with me from jury duty?
This scenario is the most puzzling part of this thread so far.
Indeed, it is something you cannot fathom out. But hey, don't despair! Samsara has a chance with you, small, but keep annoying others at their worst hour and there would be evolution guaranteed with or without you!

Have a blessed weekend!
Not that it's implied you respect any commandments or oaths, but it's a way of saying.
Maybe you'd understand later. :thumbsup:

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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Miorita »

My brother placed a brown paste on a few paper sheets for them.
But they piled about 5 seeds on top of my seaweed sheets. When I pulled these out, the seeds fell off.
This is crazy already: they see me, I see them.
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Re: How to get rid of ant infestation outdoors without killing them?

Post by Miorita »

As my mother is showing signs of mental detereoration and and my father refuses to do anything around the house, even be a witness to anything, I have to stop frequenting here.
I have problems and I believe that an infestation is not a karmic thing. It is an infestation and it has to be dealt with.
There, contrary to feeding them, they should undergo austerities and there should be no food or water given to the people of ants or roaches.
If they get the power to fight back, I let them know that this is my home where I sleep, I dream and dwell, not theirs.
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