It doesn't matter if you live in a building, a single-story house, in the country or in the city... if you have plants nearby, you can be sure that ants will appear at some point. But where does this army of persistent and tireless insects come from? And why? Our gardener Carol Costa explains about these little messengers and what they tell you about your garden and plants. First of all, it's good to understand that there are 2 groups of ants: the tiny ones, which like sweet substances, and the leaf-cutter ants, which go around pruning plants without permission. Each of these groups appears for different reasons and needs different strategies to scare them away from the yard. The tiny ants, the ones that can't see a sugar bowl, are always looking for something sweet. And they find it in plants – in fact, in aphids and scale insects that certainly exist in the species in your garden and pots attacked by ants. Mainly aphids, which suck the sap from the plant and end up producing a disgusting result for us and a real feast for the little ants: their sweet poop. To make the tiny ants disappear from your garden and plant pots, there is no point in fighting them. What attracts this army are other little creatures, also not very friendly, and they are the ones you must expel first. To combat them, use very simple recipes such as a bath with coconut soap, or oils, such as mineral or neem. These two strategies end up drowning the mealybugs and aphids. It is also worth spraying the preparation that our plant lover always recommends: the pest detox. It is natural and the recipe is in the links, here at the end of the text. The second group of little creatures are more spacious, and have larger soldiers. Leaf-cutter ants, also known as saúvas, are easier to recognize. If you see a line of little ants carrying leaves, you can follow the trail. On one side, there is a huge anthill and, on the other side, poor plants that are the target of the leafcutter ants. The most interesting thing is that they do not eat the leaves, but rather use this organic matter to cultivate a type of fungus, which is their true food. Leafcutter ants appear in compacted soils, very poor in nutrients and lacking in molybdenum. Before you start dumping macro and micronutrients, it is worth contacting an agronomist or forestry engineer, because fertilization should be the solution, not the problem. Only a specialist will be able to analyze the soil and tell you the exact dosage for fertilization to be effective. What is allowed and has no contraindications is to use coverings (protective straws - link below) and to diversify the species planted in the area. When they appear, the leafcutter ants bring the message that the soil is very compacted and poor. The interesting thing is that these leafcutter ants, like termites, which also appear in similar places, do a great job of natural recovery. These tiny workers bring nutrients from deep down to the surface of the soil; they create tunnels that will aerate and make the soil softer; they attract predators, such as birds and other animals, which will fertilize the soil with their feces. Little by little, what was a very poor place starts to make room for a substrate that is more suitable for other seeds to germinate. Nature does its silent work. And how to combat leafcutter ants? Of course, treating the soil solves the problem once and for all, but as a palliative, you can use two very simple tricks. 1 - prevent access. A wool barrier around the plant helps a lot, since the fibers make it very difficult for the ants to overcome this cute obstacle. Take that fluffy ball of crochet or knitting thread, give it a good fray and make a little fence around your plant. 2 - sesame seeds. Use raw seeds, spread near the anthill. The insects will take the seed to the anthill for cultivation, and the type of mold that sesame seeds generate ends up messing up the ants' entire cultivation process. The result will be starving ants. This is the cruelest solution, so how about maintaining an environment for everyone, plants and animals? If you diversify, everything will be well balanced and nature itself will ensure that there is no excess – neither on the side of the ants, who only want food, nor on our side, who only want a green place. Plant more species of plants on this lawn and the game will be more beautiful! Detox against pests: - recipe: https://minhasplantas.com.br/tv/praga... Protective straws - learn how to use them: https://minhasplantas.com.br/blog/pal...