See tips and information on fire ant control in Florida citrus groves from a UF/IFAS entomologist.
Fire ant control in the citrus grove should be an important part of any citrus operations pest control. This is especially true if there are young citrus trees in the grove, according to a Citrus Industry article sharing tips for fire ant control from UF/IFAS assistant professor of entomology Xavier Martini. Martini shared the tips at the recent UF/IFAS Citrus Health Forum.
Tips for Fire Ant Control
Martini said, “Especially if you have a young citrus grove of small trees, you really want to protect your root system and remove any ant nests that may be close by your citrus trees.” He maintained that the problem is with red imported fire ants, “The other ants don’t make as much damage. They are not as aggressive. The big difficulty is that fire ants are everywhere,” Martini said. “So, you really can’t get your grove free of ants. The best thing you can do is remove your fire ant nests when they’re too close to your trees … The colony will build on the root system. That’s when you really want to get rid of them.”
Tips for fire ant control include:
- “Baits are a management method, but ants need to be active for the baits to be effective. This is normally when temperatures are greater than 53 degrees Fahrenheit.”
- “An alternative to baits is to apply boiling water at an extremely high pressure.”
Griffin Fertilizer is committed to helping both growers and ranchers make sound agronomic and economic decisions in order to maximize the health of their grove and pasture. As a full-service custom dry & liquid fertilizer blender and crop protection product distributor, we will continue our mission to further advance Florida agriculture. For questions or concerns about your farm or pasture, contact us and one of our team will be in touch.