10/12/2026
🐜🌱 ANTS: FRIEND OR FOE? 🌱🐜
When you see a trail of ants, do you immediately reach for the insecticide? You may be doing your soil and plants a disservice!
There are approximately 14,000 known species of ants worldwide, found on every continent except Antarctica. California alone is home to hundreds of species!
Let's learn how these small insects serve as ecosystem engineers and why they are important to our gardens.
🐜 1. Natural Pest Control: Many ants help control pests by eating the eggs and larvae of other insects.
🌱 2. Soil Improvement: Ants improve soil aeration by digging tunnels and creating
underground chambers. These passageways help water and nutrients move through the soil, where plant roots can access them.
🌻 3. Nutrient Recycling: Worker ants carry seeds and decaying insects into their tunnels to nourish the colony. In doing so, they also contribute organic matter and nutrients to the soil.
🐦 4. Supporting Wildlife: Birds, reptiles, and amphibians depend on ants as a food source. These tiny insects are an important part of the food chain!
💚 HOW CAN WE HELP?
It's simple! Leave some areas of your yard wild, avoid disturbing ant hills when they aren't causing problems, and limit the use of broad-spectrum pesticides.
Of course, not all ants are beneficial in every situation. Some species protect aphids and other plant-damaging insects, so it's important to recognize when management may be necessary.
🌎 Though seemingly insignificant, ants play a vital role in our environment!
📚 For more information, click here:
https://onlineentomology.ifas.ufl.edu/about/articles/entomology/why-ants-are-important-what-ants-do-for-ecosystems/
https://ucanr.edu/blog/topics-subtropics/article/ants-are-good
Article by: Betty Guida
Photo credit: Unsplash
ucanr.edu/sites/RiversideMG
