It’s that time of year when the ants come marching in one by one ;).  Here are a few ways from WikiHow on how to kill them without pesticides…

• Spray ants with vinegar water. The low Ph kills them without damaging most furniture.
• Sticky tape. When you see an ant, place the sticky tape over it and use your fingers to squash it beneath the tape. The ant’s carcass will be stuck on the sticky tape, so it will be clean. Repeat until tape is no longer sticky.
• Feed them corn meal. They take it back to their nest and feast on it, but since they can’t digest it, it eventually kills them. Corn meal won’t harm children or pets.
• Follow the ant trails back to their source. This might lead you through some unexpected places, but once you find the anthill(s), you can attack the root of the problem.  If you’d prefer not to hurt the ants, spread pureed orange peels in and around the anthills. They dislike citrus and might relocate on their own.
• Squash ants with your fingers. Be sure to wash your hands afterwards, especially since many ants stink.  [unfortunately this is my personal daily approach!]

Ideas on preventing the problem:

• Look for areas of your house that might serve as entrances for ants. These include cracks, holes, windows, and pet doors. These are often good locations to use one of the prevention techniques described below.
• Sprinkle salt on flat surfaces. This is a great way to keep ants off of windowsills.
• Draw barriers using chalk. The chalk will stick to vertical surfaces like walls and doorjambs. Ants don’t like the calcium carbonate in chalk and will steer clear of it.
• Squirt lemon juice along outdoor edges. This will keep the inside of your house from getting sticky but deter ants with a strong citrus smell.
• Sprinkle cayenne pepper out of the reach of animals. Spreading pepper along cracks and crevices will keep ants at bay, but be sure your pets won’t be able to lick or sniff it.
• Spray vinegar water over larger surfaces. This will handy in places where using lots of powder won’t be efficient.
• Spread pureed orange peels around the foundation of your home. Again, ants aren’t fond of the smell of citrus.
• Smear petroleum jelly along edges. This is a great way to keep ants out of your pets’ bowls.