ants on an orange fruit

Plants That Repel Ants From Your Garden

We’ve talked a little bit about ants in the garden and what should be done about them. Ants don’t always pose problems for you or your garden – many types of ants actually benefit your garden. But there are some ants that can cause damage, like carpenter ants. Others can inflict pain or death, like fire ants. If you have a legitimate ant problem in your garden, plants that repel ants can be a huge help.

You may want to consider professional help when getting rid of potentially damaging and deadly ants, though. These insects aren’t worth messing around with.

Plants that repel ants

There are 9 plants that we’re aware of having ant deterring powers. Planting these around the perimeter of your home and garden might help reduce the number of ants prowling around in spaces you don’t want them to be. These herbs are beautiful and have other uses as well, so even if you find that they aren’t very effective at getting rid of ants, they’re still great to grow.

Additionally, we’ve heard some anecdotal evidence that ants are dissuaded by these plants:

  • Garlic
  • Marigolds
  • Lemongrass

Plants that attract ants

If ants are presenting a huge problem in your garden, it may be worth considering which plants they like the most and growing less of them. These are plants that attract ants:

Plants that produce sweet fruits and vegetables are liable to attract ants due to their natural sugar. Mustard and nasturtium are notorious for attracting aphids, which are another food source for some types of ants. Catnip, garlic, and chives are known to repel aphids, which in turn will help reduce ant food sources.

Do these plants really repel ants?

It’s worth discussing the reality that we can’t know for sure if these plants will really help deter ants. There are tons of different ant species which have different likes and dislikes, and these recommended plants may or may not work. This advice comes mostly anecdotally from long time gardeners.

Still, it can’t hurt to take their advice. At the end of the day, if these plants don’t repel ants, you’ve still planted a lovely garden filled with useful plants!

Sarah Biren
Freelance Writer
Sarah is a baker, cook, author, and blogger living in Toronto. She believes that food is the best method of healing and a classic way of bringing people together. In her spare time, Sarah does yoga, reads cookbooks, writes stories, and finds ways to make any type of food in her blender.