The AntsCanada Ant Forum's

AntsLuxembourg wrote: ↑

Wed May 10, 2023 12:36 pm

Hey,

As some of you may know, I stopped keeping ants, however that doesn't mean I won't post stuff like this journal.

So to get started, I moved to a new home with a garden and I wanted to plant some stuff, one of which is going to be a cherry tree. Of course only once it's ready for planting and once I made up my mind. What you need to know is that my home is right next to a forest and I'm sure you all know what that means. Ants are pretty much everywhere. I don't think they are already digging in the current pot, but one colony is nesting in a former big flower pot and another colony is next to a tile of my walking path.

Anyway, I was taking care of a few of the plants and thought it would be nice to take some pictures of the ants sitting on leafs of the Cherry tree as they seem to be drawn to some of the sweet juices / liquids off the young tree. I'm pretty sure it's going to be some time before the tree is big enough to grow any fruits and until then, I will enjoy to take some pictures for you guys.

Here is the link for anyone who wants to have a look.
https://imgur.com/a/3vMk4tY

Will try to post some pictures every so often for you guys.

If anyone wants to try and ID I guess it's lasius niger but I might be wrong.

AntsLuxembourg wrote: ↑

Tue May 16, 2023 7:00 am

After returning from my trip to Düsseldorf (Japanday) I found the cherry tree laying on the side yet again due to strong winds. Noticed it this morning myself that we have some random strong winds coming through lately. I already prepare everything for repotting so there would be more weight to the bottom, making it harder for the cherry tree to fall over and then I found an actual colony inside it. They had managed to dig out some big tunnels and I would consider that they actually are a full colony. I didn't see any eggs tho. Maybe in the future.

I did what I planned to do and added some soil on the bottom, put the tree inside and then adding soil all around to give the roots of the tree a lot of space to expand. I'm sure the colony will provide the tree with some room to grow the roots in and get some additional air while the tree gives them structure for their chambers. After that was done, I watered the tree and placed it so the ants could (if they find their way back) return to the cherry tree without drowning in the "moat" if there is water.

It will take them some time to dig their way out, but I am sure the ants will as well appreciate the bigger area and safer tree.

Also found a colony in one of my rosemary pots.

antperson24 wrote: ↑

Tue May 16, 2023 8:44 am

Maybe they were in the process of moving when you found them.
What species is the colony in the rosemary pot?

antperson24 wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 4:06 pm

Is this it's abdomen?

AntsLuxembourg wrote: ↑

Sat Jun 03, 2023 4:30 am

antperson24 wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 4:06 pm

Is this it's abdomen?

I don't think the picture worked ^^'
Try again and maybe use imgur.com. It's an easy drag and drop