Ants have made a home in my oncidium orchid!

[dounoharm]

I had a constant barrage of ants in my greenhouse...they loved it there! I would kill off one colony only to have another sprout up in another pot, lol.....I tried everything in the world! I constantly left fresh bait out too....I would spray regularly every two weeks with insecticidal soap or systemic, alternating....and when I discovered a new colony, I would take the plant out, dump it way far away from the greenhouse in the garden, and wash wash wash that plant! then repot with fresh media in a clean new pot...it was an ongoing battle to the end, lol....I never ever think that I won....good luck in your house, the above treatment sounds good!

[silken]

I have to wonder if you have a source of ants that are getting to your grow area and prefer this plant. Ant eggs are a good size easy enough to see. With all the treatments it should get rid of everything on the plant, unless there are more nearby that keep returning.

Sometimes in spring we get ants in the house. I can never tell where they originate from. The most effective thing I found was using those little bottles of ant poison. It is syrupy and I just squeeze out a bit on a piece of paper near where all the ants seem to accumulate. They look like little cows at a feeding trough! I even have to replenish it they drink so much! And within a few days there are no more ants. They take some to their nest and feed everybody. You could try doing that in your growing area. We have 3 cats and they never seem interested in the stuff although I would monitor any pets or kids to start with for sure.