3- 



There are ants in our Southwest v/hich harvest mature ^riss seed, 

 cr.rr^' the seed to their nestc, remove the husks, and store the ediolc 

 ker.ielG in granaries for future use. The chaff is cleared av/ay; -or all 

 •^ts G"Jt?nd a f-^ood bit of tine l^epin..- their homes and thons-'lvss cl3an 

 'joarl in sanitary condition. 



But those harvester aiits con't reen so wonderful to us, ;\s those 

 j^ardenor ants. Yes, sir, there are actually ants which raise low forr.is 

 of -jilant life kin to mushrooms and molds. They plant the vardon, propare 

 the soil, rcop out the weeds, and oat the products of their own (gardens. 



The quoon ant starts the undergro'ond p;arden, out the workjrs carry 

 it on, Tl":cy bring ip leaves, and other substances which they find suitable 

 for r.ian-dre for the new f;arden. The job of weeding the garden falls to the 

 GT-iallcst v;orkers — as some small boys claLm it does in some of the /jardens 

 of our humans in the suburbs. These so-called "mushroom gardens" are 

 really cultivated. The fun-^us grovm develops large heads not found out- 

 side the -ir.ts' gardens. 



T'ell, entomologists can tell you even more Y/onderful things tlian 

 these about ants. There are "soldier" ants, which can't even feed than- 

 solvcs, but v/hich fight and capture other ants and force them to v/ork 

 •AS thjir slaves. B"j.t we can't go into all the different stages ;.\nd types 

 of r.nt society. 



Anc/waj"", some of ra^' more practical friends are saying; "That's all 

 ri-ht but how do you get rid of the pests?" 



I can best answer such questions by Just referring you to some 

 firs't-rate bulletins on the subject. There is one called "House Ar.ts, Kinds 

 and ::cth.ods of Control" which it is v.'ell to have handy. It is ?a-'ucrs* 

 Bulletin ITo. 740. Remember the nunber, 7-40, And by the way, those 

 o-ollotins are free as Ioil^ as the su^joly lasts, Tliere is a special one on 

 the Argentine ant which does so much dama^:e in the South. It is called 

 "The Argentine Ant as a Household Pest," and is Farmers' Bulletin ITo, 1101. 

 And there is also one on termites or white ants. Termites are not really 

 ants at all, the entomologists tell me, but they live and act a lot like 

 sjits, and do a tremendous amount of damage to the foundations and woodwork 

 of buildings throughout the United States. "Preventing Damage by Terr.iites 

 or r.iite Ants" is Famers' Bulletin !To. 147:5. 



AITi:0UIIC5?.!EITT ; You can get those bulletins by writing either to this 

 stc'tion or b;/ writing direct to the United States Department of Agrictilture. 

 I'll repeat the names and numbers. "House Ants, Kinds and Methods of 

 Control" is Farmers Bulletin llo. 740, "The Argentine Aiit as a Ho.isehold 

 Pest" is Farmers Bulletin llo, 1101, and "Preventing Damage by Tcr.iites 

 or r..ite Ants" is Farmers Bulletin No. 1472, 



