How can I get rid of termites that I found in my raised garden beds? (I believe they came in a cheap mulch.) I found them in the beds at the end of last summer - I would like to eliminate the problem before planting season starts.
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All wood breaks down over time and termites can become a problem. My guess is the wood preservative is gone in the raised bed frame and the termites are a natural process. In a garden treatment options are limited as you will be consuming the harvest. I would suggest you remove the old wood and rebuild. New treated wood will have a number of years of resistance to the termites. Another option is to use concrete blocks as the frame work then termites will not have a food source.
Thanks Meg for your great help ! Dennis
Termites
You may want to start by verifying that the pest is actually termites. Try digging into your garden beds to find a termite nest. Look for the presence of mud shelter tubes built between the soil and a wooden structure. (Is your raised bed made from wood?) If your garden bed is close to your home or other wooden structure, you should look for evidence of termites there as well.
In most cases, once a termite infestation is established, termite control is a job for the professional pest control operator. The average homeowner seldom has the training, equipment, or chemicals (strength of chemical) needed for an effective and timely control of this pest.
A good resource for identifying termites and selecting termite control services can be found on the K-State Research and Extension website. Here is a link to download their publication on termites - just cut and paste this address into your web browser.
http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/entml2/MF722.PDF
Termites in the garden
Termites are everywhere, and finding them in your garden should not automatically be a cause for concern. On average, there are 13 to 14 colonies, each containing 100,000 or more termites, per acre of land. A typical home may easily have three or four colonies situated under or around it at any given time, unbeknownst to the homeowner. While it is possible that some termites may have been transported into your yard with the mulch, it's far more likely they just came there naturally. Each year, at just the right time, reproductive termites "swarm" out of their colonies, find mates, and settle down to look for a new place to start a colony. A well mulched garden provides the moist soil environment they need to live.
Termites and ants actually help us in the garden, by transporting organic matter deep into the soil, and opening up channels for water and oxygen through the soil. They are an important part of the ecosystem, working to actively decompose fallen wood, leaves and dead plant material and return it to the soil. We need them in the world to clean up dead vegetation, making room for new life.
While some homeowners think that killing termites in the garden might help protect their home from infestation, it really doesn't work that way. The only way to protect your home from termite infestation is to be vigilant in checking for the signs of infestation, eliminating any drainage or moisture problems around the foundation that create the moist environment termites look for, and having regular inspections from a professional termite control service.
Here's another good article from K-state Research and Extension Newsletter about termites and how to check your home, and what to look for in a good termite control service.
Meg - Johnson County Extension Master Gardener
Thanks Meg
Well said. The less chemicals in our ground water the better. www.graceyfoundation.org
We had the same problem a
We had the same problem a few years ago but unfortunately, not being able to fix all those issues by ourselves we had to call a termite extermination company and ask for help. That being done, we had to pay those guys because they did a great job. In order not to infect the soil they managed to find a chemical free substance that they used specially for our garden that basically left no footprint or whatsoever.
Yep guys it is costy but such an inspection from the big guys aka termite exterminators can save you a lot of time and you might even learn more tips and tricks for the future. These guys offered us even a warranty.
Mike