Ant colony in sack of bark
 

Went to grab some bark from a full sack, that has been sitting open for a couple of months, and found a major ant colony in the bark.

Any practical ways to evict or terminate the unwanted squatters?

I need to move forward on repotting my Cymbidiums, so any and all advice is welcome.

Maybe completely submerge the bark in a bucket of water for a few hours and all the ants will either drown or float to the top.

A few hours in water won't get rid of ants - they can survive underwater for days! Personally I would chuck it and get a new bag, ants are incredibly hard to get rid of and they bring all kinds of other problems with them (scale, aphids).

Agree with Lacie. Plus if you miss any eggs, they will hatch and then you have them in your cymbidium pots. Ugh! My sympathies!

Also, Kim, I think you spoke at my local orchid society meeting recently. I couldn't make it, and was sorry to have missed it!

On a dry day, spread the bark out on a flat surface (tarp on the driveway for example). Spread as thin as possible. The ants will go elsewhere.

To control ants, I highly recommend Terro ant baits, which are based on borax and sugar.

Add a small amount of dish soap to the soaking water. This will reduce the surface tension. The ants will not survive this, and it will also drown the eggs. Then rinse the soap off the bark before use.

You can also put the bark in your oven at 225F / 110C long enough to heat the bark through.

Yes, I was there (and there was a pretty good attendance). Hope to see you next time.

---------- Post added at 03:59 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:58 PM ----------

Considering that it is a near full sack (2 CFT), I think that the driveway on a tarp is the way to go.
Thx,

I've cleared ants out of many of my pots by submerging the pots in water. It works.

I can confirm that. Once the nest is destroyed they'll leave.