Ask the administrators of the nursing home about their fire ant management program. Various methods can be used, depending on the nursing home and state regulations. The best way to avoid fire ant incursions into the nursing home itself is to eliminate colonies outdoors, before the ants migrate indoors. That usually involves the use of a broadcast bait or a broadcast granular material over the nursing home grounds as well as surface sprays around the perimeter of the structure.
Fire ant colonies occasionally migrate indoors, usually in response to extreme environmental conditions such as drought or flooding. Ants can enter through cracks as small as 0.5 mm. They will bring with them the queen(s) and brood (eggs, larvae and pupae) and construct a mound by bringing soil from under the slab or by nesting in wall cavities or in rotting structural timbers.
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Find more information about fire ants in eXtension's Imported Fire Ant Resource Area.
