There are many natural remedies extant that are credited with the ability to kill fire ants without the use of toxic chemical drenches or poisoned baiting systems. Most of these methods are based on urban legend or misinformation and do not work. Fire ants don't eat their feet off if they walk through powdered sugar nor do they swell up and die from consuming grits. Boiling water is the only remedy I have found which actually works. Since this method is cheap and easy to implement, I recommend giving it a try the next time you need to kill fire ants fast.

The good new is that using boiling water to kill fire ant colonies can be just as effective as the most harmful chemicals on the market. The bad news is that it will kill the grass around the bed. If you are serious about not exposing your family to toxins you may be willing to pay this price. The affected grass will grow back over a period of a few weeks or you can put a new square of turf down after the treatment.

Because fire ants have evolved to support multiple queens in each nest (sometimes hundreds of queens for large colonies), you will have to exterminate a significant percentage of the total ant population in order to eliminate the bed's viability. To accomplish this you need to treat the bed in the morning as the topsoil begins to be heated by the sun. The majority of the ant colony moves close to the surface at this time of day to allow their cold-blooded circulatory systems to be revved up by solar energy.

Heat water just to the boiling point in the largest pot you can find. Use oven mitts to carry this container to the ant bed. Make sure you have a clear path from the stove to the yard since spilling boiling water on yourself can result in severe burns. Pour water directly onto the ant bed from a height of no more than 18 inches to avoid splashing yourself and keep your head out of the way of steam rising from the pot. Watch your feet also since the fire ants will come swarming out of the ground in an attempt to escape their hellish fate.

Douse the colony twice more as fast as you can get the water ready. Treat again over the next two days in a widening circle to kill the remaining ants that are attempting to rebuild the nest. Executed correctly, this procedure can kill over 60 percent of the population in a single ant bed. If the ants do rebuild after this it will be a slow process and you may not have to treat again for a couple of months. When I began to prepare the soil in my organic garden in February I successfully used this method to clear two large fire ant colonies from the area. It is now June as I write this and my garden is still fire ant free.

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