All Bugs Good & Bad Webinar Series- Fire Ant Management Using Baits

When: Friday, March 6, 2015 at 1PM CST
Link: http://connect.extension.iastate.edu/fireant
Cost: FREE

Learn how to make the biology of fire ants work for you not against you. This webinar presented by Dr. Lawrence "Fudd" Graham from Auburn University will discuss fire ant baits and other control methods.  It will also provide the latest information on the Pseudacteon phorid flies, natural enemies of fire ants.  Moderated by Dani Carroll and Bethany O'Rear, Regional Extension Agents, Alabama Cooperative Extension System, and Vicky Bertagnolli-Heller, Extension Agent and Master Gardener Coordinator, Clemson University.  Click here to login as a guest and participate in the live event.   Note: on March 6, the link to the live webinar opens about 15 minutes before the webinar.  If you log in earlier, you will get an error message. 

For more webinars in this series, see All Bugs Good and Bad 2015 Webinar Series. The webinars are brought to you by the following eXtension Communities of Practice: Imported Fire Ants, and Urban IPM; and by the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and the University of Georgia Center for Urban Agriculture. 


If you missed the previous webinar on Pesticide strategy- the good, the bad the ugly, you can still view it from the link below by clicking Watch recording in the top right corner.
https://learn.extension.org/events/1864#.VOdGJCzcBNg

Baiting for fire ants in the fall

Broadcast baiting for imported fire ants in the fall can help reduce the number of fire ant mounds see in the fall and spring.

Tips for baiting:

• Make sure the bait is fresh
• fire ants pick bait up as food, if bait is rancid they will not pick it up
• fresh bait should have a nutty or corn-like scent (unless it's spinosad bait which smells differently than other baits)
• rancid bait smells sour
• Apply bait when fire ants are foraging



Red imported fire ant mound.

• on hot days, fire ants forage in the evening when it's cooler
• if you are unsure if fire ants are foraging, place out a hotdog slice or potato chip next to a mound and check back for activity after about 15 minutes
• Broadcasting baits can save time by not having to locate each mound in your yard
• Broadcasting can also help to get smaller mounds that you may not notice
• Baits applied at lower rates (1-2 pounds per acre) should be applied using a hand held spreader set on the LOWEST setting
• Baits applied at rates higher than 1-2 pounds per acre may be applied using a push/ drop spreader calibrated according to label instructions
• Do NOT water in baits
• If baits get wet, they become unattactive to fire ants
• apply baits when rain is not expected for at least 24 hours
• turn off sprinkler systems
• apply baits after dew has burned off the grass
• Organize a community wide fire ant management program
• Having neighbors bait for fire ants at the same time can help push re-invasion boundaries further out
• studies show community wide management can reduce the number of fire ants within the community, reduce the amount of money spent on fire ant management and reduce the amount of chemical placed into the environment
• Make sure to read & follow all label instructions, including utilizing the correct application equipment

 

Fire Ant Webinar- FREE!

Guess who is up next month for the All Bugs Good and Bad Webinar Series?  That's right ladies and gentlemen, it's me. So if you haven't heard me talk fire ants previously or want a refresher course, log on.

Here's the skinny:

All Bugs Good and Bad Webinar Series: Fire Ant Management

Learn how to manage your fire ant problem in this webinar by Wizzie Brown (this page has an awful, old picture of me...MUST get it updated soon!), Program Specialist - IPM, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension. You don't have to spend a lot of time and money to control fire ants.  A little knowledge about how fire ants live will make you see how easy it is to control them.  Moderated by Mike McQueen, Regional Extension Agent, Alabama Cooperative Extension System and Amanda Tedrow, County Extension Agent, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension. Click here to login as a guest and participate in the live event.  For more webinars in this series, see All Bugs Good and Bad 2014 Webinar Series. The webinars are brought to you by the following eXtension Communities of Practice: Imported Fire Ants, Urban IPM, Bee Health and Invasive Species; and by the Alabama Cooperative Extension System.

 

The webinar will be held on Friday, June 6, 2014 at 1PM CDT.  You can login for the webinar here.

Remember, the webinars are FREE and they will be recorded so if you miss it then you can watch it later.

Fire Ant Webinar on Fall Baiting- September 4, 2013

A colleague of mine- Molly Keck from San Antonio- will be giving a fire ant webinar on next week that will discuss why baiting for fire ants in the fall makes sense. 

 

Seminar: Fall – A Good Time to Control Fire Ants with Bait

Date: Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Time: 1PM (Central)

More information can be found at Fall a Good Time to Control Fire Ants with Bait including how to connect to the webinar.  On Sept.  4, participants can use this link to connect to the webinar.

The Don’t Bug Me Webinar Series, which began earlier this year, included five webinars discussing fire ants, tramp ants and bed bugs.  Links to view these archived webinars can be found here.
The webinars are sponsored by eXtension and the Alabama Cooperative Extension System.  They are coordinated by the Imported Fire Ant eXtension Community of Practice.
As upcoming webinars approach, watch eXtension’s Don’t be Bugged Webinar Series page for more information on that particular webinar.