Ants in the Garden – A Good Thing
The next time you see an ant hill in your garden, don’t fret - it just might be a very good thing. Ants disperse seeds for about 20 percent of our woodland wildflowers. Some seeds, from plants such as bloodroot and trillium, have a fatty substance called an eliasome on them. Ants find the eliasome to be a delicacy and bring the seeds back to their nests. Once they eat the eliasome, ants discard the seeds into a compost pile of organic materials within the nest structure. The seeds are then in the perfect environment to grow into plants.
Viewer Tip: Enjoy the ants in your garden. Watch their movements and what they are bringing back to their nests. Some of the seeds can be fascinating. The treat is finding new plants in your garden, carried in by ants as seeds, then grown in the organic matter found in the ant nest compost piles.
Seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall
This information is provided by the New England Wild Flower Society. For some top tips for plant conservation, visit http://www.newenglandwild.org/protect/top-tips-for-plant-conservation.html.
