As spring turns to summer, ants tend to creep into compost piles more easily if the conditions are good.
To be clear, ants aren’t necessarily a problem for a compost pile, but you don’t want the pile to be overrun with them.
Luckily, the steps to getting ants on their way out is very easy:
1) Dampen the pile – ants show up when a compost pile is dry. “moist as a wrung out sponge” still applies. Add more browns, then get them wet.
2) Turn the pile – Not my favorite option, since I like to be as lazy as possible with composting, but it does work. Turning the contents will disrupt their plants and re-bury the food scraps.
3) Mix in grass – it retains moisture that will help discourage ants.
Between these three quick actions, you can control the ant population pretty quickly- it’s that simple!
I’m embarrassed to admit this, but I’ve used ant killer. It’s worked, but then what did the poison due to my vegetables down the road? (You don’t have to answer that.)
Depending on your composting setup, perhaps your pile was able to digest a good amount of it… Do you have a massive pile consistently cooking?
Direct insecticide application to a compost pile definitely increases your chances of ingesting some of those toxins down the line!