Simple homemade ant trap protects your garden's health

Although ants are generally beneficial for the garden ecosystem, an excessive number can cause damage. At that point, it's worth using a simple but effective trap to solve the problem quickly.

Usually, the presence of ants in the garden is beneficial. These small insects thoroughly clean the lawn of organic debris. By digging underground tunnels, they aerate the soil, making it more fertile.

However, if the ant population in our garden grows significantly, it's better to act before they destroy flowering ornamental plants. Before resorting to chemical agents available in garden stores, consider using methods that are less harmful to the environment.

An effective method is to prepare a simple, homemade trap that you can make in just a few minutes. You will need an empty plastic bottle, such as a water bottle, along with sugar, honey, and borax.

Put a heaping tablespoon of borax and the same amount or more of sugar and honey into the bottle. Shake it thoroughly to combine the ingredients. Then, cut an opening in the bottle so that the ants can enter, and place the prepared trap in the garden, ideally where there are the most insects.

The sugar will attract the ants, which will eagerly eat the mixture and poison themselves with the borax. If one of them carries the food back to the nest, as they often do, it will poison the entire colony.

Although borax, which is sodium borate, is an ecological alternative to chemical agents, it's worth exercising caution when using it. Improper use can result in skin, eye, or respiratory irritation.

When using borax-based mixtures, prepare them in well-ventilated areas. It's also advisable to wear protective gloves and, upon finishing, to seal the borax container tightly and store it out of reach of children and pets.