Gardening for Amateurs 



1103 



tures to all. Their powerful jaws are fitted 

 for biting or cutting, and it is with them that 

 they do so much mischief in the garden. 

 Eggs are laid by the females, and these 

 hatch duly into larvae from which pupae 

 and perfect ants develop. Their habitations 

 generally consist of a number of irregular 

 tunnels or chambers connected together, 

 often quite close to the surface of the soil, 

 at times placed deeply in the ground ; very 

 often they have their home below some large 

 stone, which when removed reveals the 

 well-organised colony and the excited little 

 workers underneath. Some species nest in 

 decaying wood, and these kinds work much 

 damage on woodwork which has become 

 rotten and brittle. The red ants, which are 

 the pests most commonly found in gardens, 

 are destructive little insects, often completely 

 ruining woodwork, furniture, books, and 

 such like before their presence is noticed. 

 In the garden they pollute fruits with their 

 excrement, and they are certainly objec- 

 tionable about flowers in pots or within the 

 greenhouse ; indeed, they are classified as 

 one of our most troublesome and undesirable 

 nuisances, and a proper understanding of the 

 various " cures " is highly desirable. 



We would advise amateurs to employ 

 the well-known Ballikinram Ant Destroyer. 

 This is a very useful liquid, and, though 

 poisonous, and therefore demanding care- 

 ful manipulation, it is a never -failing 

 remedy for these destructive pests. Full 

 directions are given with the substance. 

 Note, however, that ants, unlike woodlice, 

 earwigs, and many other pests, are cleanly 

 insects, so that slates or other materials used 



should be scrupulously clean and dry. For 

 work in the open we have found Vaporite 

 and Vertox, two proprietary soil fumigants, 

 of great value, particularly in cases where 

 liquids can only be used with difficulty. 

 Beta Naphthol dissolved in methylated spirits 

 and then used at the rate of a teaspoonful 

 in a gallon of water is an excellent solution 

 for flooding their nests in order to clear them 

 off, but cold water, or preferably hot water, 

 works wonders if their haunts are kept 

 persistently moist for a time ; they dislike 

 moisture of any kind, and dry warm quarters 

 are sure to attract them. 



Of other substances that may be em- 

 ployed one of the best (but a very poisonous 

 one) is arsenic. One ounce of ordinary 

 arsenic is placed in an iron pot with one 

 quart of water, and this is boiled until the 

 quantity is reduced to half its bulk, then 

 half a pound of brown sugar is added. This 

 mixture may then be dropped about the 

 runs and around the nests, or placed in 

 saucers in the haunts of the ants. Carbolic 

 acid diluted with ten times its bulk of water 

 is another good remedy, and fresh ground 

 lime certainly causes them to evacuate the 

 places they have made their home. Of 

 traps few things can excel a good bone 

 from the soup-pot in which some pieces of 

 meat have been left ; if these are placed 

 near the ants' nests they will soon be 

 overrun with insects, after which they 

 should be plunged into boiling water. 

 When lifted out and dried, the bone may 

 be used again, so that the trap is a very 

 cheap one, and very effective if it is 

 examined regularly. 



Burning Garden Rubbish. By far the with a sheet of galvanised iron, the contents 



best way of disposing of refuse in the 



be kept dry until there is sufficient to 



garden is to burn it, for which purpose a burn. In this way a supply of valuable 



furnace formed of bricks is very useful, wood ashes for manuring purposes will 



Rubbish may be deposited in the furnace as be always available. See illustration on 



it is collected, and if the top is covered page 1083. 



