Farmer Ants

September 5, 2017 1:24 PM

So I noticed little ant hills around the base of each strawberry plant the other day. So cool! The strawberry plants are looking happy, so I'm not too worried about them. The internet says these ants are probably here to farm aphids, and it's fine if that means I never eat a strawberry. But the strawberry plants are right under the huge & beloved amazing rosebush that makes deep red roses all summer long. Is there any way to keep the strawberries (and ants) without ending up with an aphid infestation in the rosebush?

I would prefer not to kill anybody, and I would prefer not to be spraying down the rosebush every day.

posted by aniola to Home & Garden (5 answers total)

You leave out important info: do you actually SEE aphids on the strawberry? The ants could also be just doing their own thing and like that neighborhood.

If the strawberries do have aphids, note that many aphids do have some degree of host specificity, and hence may not be interested in moving to the rose.

If you do see aphids, can you describe them? Color, density, how much of the strawberry is covered? If you do not see aphids, you may be missing a few under leaves or whatnot, but they are not microscopic, you can see them if you look. And if you look carefully and can't find them, this is a non-issue.

Other pertinent details may also help: where in the world are you, any photos of ants or putative aphids, photos of the area in question, etc.

Aphids are sort of weird: during the warm season, females are born pregnant, and hence spread clonally along a plant. But, winged forms mate and spread to other locations, often once a year in temperate climates. So if you are in CA or TX, your risks and concerns are a bit different from if you are in VT or PA.


In general: aphids can often be well controlled with simple water: blast with hose rigorously, every other day. They cannot keep up with that if you catch the infestation when small. So it is conceivable to have aphids and ants on your strawberries without overly impacting the rose, but you'd have to resign yourself to periodic rose defense with water spray.
posted by SaltySalticid at 2:08 PM on September 5, 2017 [1 favorite]

Oh, hi. I had a beautiful and major aphid farm happening at my house, right outside a window so I spent quite a lot of time observing it. So I'd say if there's an actual aphid farm happening, you will be able to notice it -- the ants, the aphids, the "dirt" they leave behind, etc. If you're not seeing that, maybe it's just ants.
posted by BlahLaLa at 3:28 PM on September 5, 2017

Response by poster: I'm in Portland, Oregon, I haven't seen any aphids yet, hurray! Non-issue!

I meant to also ask: WHY? Why are the ants making small hills at the base of each plant? I mean, I can imagine that would be good for the plant since they spread by runners, but I can't figure out what's in it for the ants.
posted by aniola at 11:34 AM on September 6, 2017

Several different kinds of ants do this sort of thing around root systems; I always assumed the plant structure allows them to build stronger and/or larger tunnels, as well as serving as a convenient landmark.
posted by aspersioncast at 12:10 PM on September 6, 2017

Aphids on strawberry ROOTS are a thing too. :( My strawberry patch is infested with those buggers. It can apparently keep the plant from producing fruit. I didn't even know until I was relocating some runners and the roots of the ones I was shifting around were full of blue-green aphids. And ants. Thanks for the help, ants.
posted by WowLookStars at 1:11 PM on September 6, 2017