Camellia & ants

Hi there Northernlass
I haven't had ants with a camellia but I had azaleas in pots
which were overrun with ants and they died. I would empty the pot out and get rid of the ants. I always put ant-powder under pots now to deter them from going in.

Hi Northernlass - nice to know you have a camellia that old! You may be able to kill all the ants inside the nest without re-potting. Boric Acid will not harm the plant, but kills ants. Mix 15% boric acid in 5% sugar - leave in the pot in a small shallow plate or lid. Ants will eat it (attracted by the sugar), return to the nest and kill offspring. Of course be sure pets and children cannot get into it.

The 'guru Alan' says that it's best to take the plant out, empty the pot and re-plant in fresh compost, then place Ant traps by the pot feet. The ants can disturb the root ball thus killing the plant. Try Barriersland's suggestion but be aware of the problem. I had to do this last year and tipped the pot onto a groundsheet - the ants went crazy!!!! - not a pleasant job but everything survived including me. :-0

ants make hundreds of tunnels round the roots and to my knowladge no plants like that.the bigger the collany the worse the damage

Thanks for all your advice. Will try the easy route first and if all else fails will get hubby to empty the pot and be eaten by ants!!

I have exactly the same problem (my Camellia is about 10 yrs old too). Where do you get Boric acid from???

Boric acid - i'm going to try my local chemist, if no joy there will buy it from an e-bay shop.