# Peanut butter and borax



## LtlWilli (Mar 11, 2008)

Two things....I do hope it is real, and I desperately hope it is cheap. Lord knows we can use all the help we can get.
LtlWilli


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## Robert Brenchley (Apr 23, 2000)

Borax will definitely kill ants, but I haven't heard of this mix before. Try it and see!


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## Conchis (Feb 10, 2009)

I think there might be places where you can get a real deal on some "not for human use" peanut butter these days.


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## Walliebee (Nov 17, 2006)

Yes this method does work. 

For fire ants, cat/dog food mixed with boric acid (Borax) works best. Peanut butter will work also. Fire ants are protein foragers so the higher the protein the more likely they will take the bait. 

For sugar ants, use jelly with boric acid (Borax).

WARNING: This will kill your cat, dog, squirrels, possums, racoons, etc. if they eat it!!!

IMO, not the best of methods due to the high risk of non-target casualties.


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## rw3212 (Apr 8, 2008)

*Covered mix*

I was thinking of putting this mix under a bucket or flower pot to keep out those it isn't intended for. The ants can get to it from underground or through the grass. What do you think of this?


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## dcross (Jan 20, 2003)

What's the ratio for mixing?

How much borax would a good sized mammal(cat,dog,child) have to eat to be seriously affected?


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## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

now why would you wish to kill your VERY good friend the fire ant? once dead, who are you going to rely on to keep the shb and varroa mite in check?


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## beekinjax (Jan 7, 2009)

Tecumseh:
"now why would you wish to kill your VERY good friend the fire ant? once dead, who are you going to rely on to keep the shb and varroa mite in check?"

how do you keep the fire ants out of your hives?


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## rw3212 (Apr 8, 2008)

*fire ants and hive*

I don't keep them out that is the problem. The hives are full of them and they can get through beesuits. Of course they are not a problem right now, but mounds are every 12-24 inches throughout the yard. 

I have tried the oil cans on legs, salt in the area (kills grass, but ants don't care). I have even resorted to granular fireant bait, NOTHING works so far.

Any good ideas welcome.


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## Bizzybee (Jan 29, 2006)

I have heard of a few like Ron and TwT that have a problem with them. No problem with myself. Maybe because of my stands? I use PVC pipe for stand legs that are about 12 to 15 inches long. The hives sit just below my knee height off of the ground.

If that isn't what keeps them out, I don't know what else it might be? I don't put anything on the ground around them and there are plenty of ants around. They keep the place clean and until they cause a problem I don't plan to do anything to evict them.

I should say that I have seen a few of them around hives on occasion and sometimes on a dead out but that's about it.

Way back when, when I starting beeking. I came up with the stands that I use with the intent of being able to put the stand legs in water to prevent pests (ants) from getting to the hives. And something that wouldn't rot in the water. The ants never became a problem and I've never had to use the water idea but I have continued to build the stands that same way. I like the stands and I do still have that option if I ever need it.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

We don't have fire ants, but I have gotten rid of ants with 1 part borax (look in the laundry section at the grocery store) 1 part jelly and 1 part water (to keep it from drying out too fast). Since the fire ants are fond of protien, the peanut butter would make sense.


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## michaelaao (Jan 16, 2009)

Boric acid/borax is a stomach poison only and you will need to make several applications each season. It is fairly cheap, fairly safe, (MSDS is very comparable to table salt) The key to using it is not to give up too soon, it will take time, but eventually you will notice headway. Since you mentioned ant baits use a bait with avermectin in it. This is a stomach poison and a growth regulator which will really speed up the process. Products out of China are fairly cheap but would not be my choice. Both will kill bees but you should not have a problem because bees would not be drawn to them. Be careful with water, both will dissolve in water so if your yard holds puddles and the bees use these puddles you could have a problem. Patience is a virtue, there are ways to solve your ant problem in a couple of weeks but then you would probably have a bee problem or maybe I should say a lack of bee problem. Good luck, Michael


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## Mathispollenators (Jun 9, 2008)

*What I do to keep ants off*

I don't do this with my bees but while camping I do. I'll coat about a 1 inch ring of axle grease around the legs of the pinic table. This will create a barrier the ants can't cross and keep them out the foods on the table. This approach may work on your hive stand legs if you do that. I have used the boric acid and peanut butter for years here making my own ant & roach baits. I'll mix it up put a spoonful on a sheet of foil and roll it up to make a tube type bait. I feel like tecumseh the ants do make a diffrence in the shb population in the yards. I have noticed there is a diffrence in beetles in the yards that have ants and those that don't. That is now one of the things I look for in a bee yard. Do I see ants and are there plenty of them. There maybe no real benifit to this but it makes us feel better and Dad says do it.


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## Scrapfe (Jul 25, 2008)

*Learning to live with fire ants.*



tecumseh said:


> now why would you wish to kill your VERY good friend the fire ant? once dead, who are you going to rely on to keep the shb and varroa mite in check?


You made a good point tecumseh. However I remember one of your fellow Texan's method of controlling fire ants and it made a lot of sense to me so I am passing it on to anyone out there who wants to try it.
1. Drink a six pack of Lone Star Beer. opcorn:
2. Recycle the six pack of beer onto the top of the fire ant mound. 

No evidence exists that this harms the ants in any way, but it does wonders for the land owner's state of mind.


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## USCBeeMan (Feb 7, 2009)

The only effective control for fire ants was Mirex. That was pulled from the market back in the 70's. Deadly to fire ants but deadly to fish or other animals because of runoff. Mirex was cracked soybeans treated with whatever chemical that was banned. After Mirex was banned the fire ant problem in my part of SC really really shot through the roof.

Couldn't even go on a dove shoot without something to put the doves in when they were retrieved. It would only take minutes before a dead dove would be covered with fire ants if left on the ground by my side while on a shoot.

Brought home some sea shells that had hermit crabs in them. All I had to do was put them on the ground. By the next day the ants would cover the shells with dirt and begin eating out the flesh. A week later you could uncover them and they would be picked clean. Heck you could put anything out dead and they would do it. Maggots didn't stand a chance if fire ants were in the carcass.


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