Ant Problem.....Gone!!!!!

[Chef Isaac]

Hello all!

I went to the beeyard today and I am happy to report that my ant problem is gone.... at least for now.

I used cinnamon and it worked great. I used some in the inntercover where the ants were getting to and than I brushed off the ants on the outter sides of the box.

So remember... cinnamon!

[guatebee]

Very awkard but interesting. Please tel us mor about you discovery!

[wayacoyote]

Yeah, Chef,
Tell us the whole story!
WayaCoyote

[Chef Isaac]

As you will be able to tell...a chef is always up for story telling!


I discovered an ant problem on my nuc. I had an inner cover on this nuc with a nuc "extender" so I could use a bucket to feed. One day, I found tons of little black ants. Normally on a strong colony, the bees could take care of it but this nuc was (and still is) having a problem and it is weak. So I knew the ants were going to cause a problem. I needed a solution.

I did not want to build a hive stand with legs and use a can with oil on each legs. Too much work. I talked with some people on this forum and consulted some books and decided that I was going to do a two step plan (two step granting the first one did not work).

The first step was that I was going to the beeyard, take off the feeder for a few days and brush the ants off. So I did this and I came back in a few days and still an ant problem. So I used cinnamon. I brushed all the ants off the outside of the nuc box, on the outside of the inner cover and on the inside of the nuc extender. I than put a hefty load of cinnamon on the outside of the inner cover. and than put the feeder back on.

Well... today I went to the beeyard and no ants at all. I was sooo happy.

To let everyone know the other measure I would have taken was to use a coat of petrolum (sp) jelly on the sides of the nuc so the ants would get stuck.

BUT since the cinnamon worked.... I am now happy!

So.... remember.... cinnamon is not just for egg nog... its cures ant problems too!

[Cyndi]

Hi Chef Isaac,

I'm new to this forum and to beekeeping in general. I installed my package yesterday. I too noticed ANTS. Did you use ground Cinnamon powder or Cinnamon Essential Oil?? I have both and wondered if sprinkling Cinnamon EO on the ground would be sufficient, if not better. Any ideas abou this as it is very strong. How do the bees feel about Cinnamon, have you noticed anything unusual yet?

[Michael Bush]

The bees don't seem to mind the cinnamon. They also don't seem to mind the ants much. smile.gif

[Cyndi]

Thanks Michael,

I put some cinnamon sticks around the hive. I hope this works because I'm seeing a few dead bees and the ants are all over the feeder. I just installed these bees yesterday and our weather is terrible. It got down to 40 degrees last night and its cloudy and raining all day here in the mountains - only warming to 50 degrees. I hope it is because of the cold and not the ants.

[Chef Isaac]

I would take the feeder off for a day, wipe all the ants away with a brush. Come back the next day with a feeder, brush the ants off again, place cinnamon around the feeder and place the feeder back on.

I like ground cinnamon.

Michael is right. However, if it is a nuc like mine was and it was a weak nuc... like mine was than ants can stress the bees out. Cinnamon does work wonders!

[Hill's Hivery]

Did you just sprinkle the Cinnamon onthe edges or make a ppaste with it?

[the buzz]

you may also think about using ajax...place it on the inner cover where you incounter problems, not inner cover with hole in the middle

[Chef Isaac]

Hills: Just sprinkle it on the inner cover.

I have never tried ajax but I can not stand the smell. I like cinnamon!

[Michael Bush]

>you may also think about using ajax

But I have to admit if it even MIGHT get in my honey, cinnamon sounds more appetizing than ajax. smile.gif