How to Keep Ants Away from Outdoor Summer Gatherings

I don’t know about you, but I love the summer. It’s the most perfect time of year to enjoy the outdoors and embrace the beauty of SUN! We literally live outside in the summer. We’re always at the beach, at the pool or out in the backyard. We live in Rhode Island so we (really do) live in a beautiful state, especially in the summer! The ONLY thing that bothers me the most in the summer is when ants come out to play. I HATE ANTS. I’m sharing today How to Keep Ants Away Naturally from Outdoor Summer Gatherings.

How to Keep Ants Away from Outdoor Summer Gatherings

How to Keep Ants Away

It’s officially summer! I have been waiting for the summer for months and months. OK, I’ve been waiting for the summer since LAST summer! Does that count? It’s my fave time of year and the heat? It doesn’t bother me ONE single bit! I love it to the core. The ONLY problem with the summer is bugs – all kinds of them! Ants are everywhere and I’m just always on the hunt to answer the question!

Beautiful Sunset

School is out! Beaches are open! The sun is shining! Kids are outside playing! It’s time to EXPLORE! And it’s time to have fun with family and friends!

Shoulder ride with Sister

It’s a beautiful, fun and wonderful time of year!

The best part for me throughout the summer is being outside. We live in Rhode Island, so we definitely experience the 4 seasons. We are (literally) inside November through May, so when summer rolls around… it’s time to be outside enjoying every single ounce of it! Kayaking with the kidsWith 5 kids, you can imagine how much outdoor fun we have with them – bike rides, swimming, morning walks, playground fun, lemonade stands, block parties, grilling and lots of picnics. Spending time together outdoors really does makes summer even sweeter for us, but not when ants come to crash the party. Oh, no… ants are not on our summer guest list, but they decide to show up anyway!

During the months of June – August, hot and humid weather draws water out of the soil forcing ants to travel in search of food and water.  It’s unbelievable to see just how quickly the ants will appear! This summer I’m taking action, ants will not be joining the McClelland family for any summer fun.

How do I plan on doing this?

Here are 5 Tips on How to Keep Ants Away from Outdoor Summer Gatherings:

How to Keep Ants AwayHow to Keep Ants Away

1. Ants could do without their morning coffee.  Coffee shavings To deter ants, sprinkle coffee grounds outside to keep them away from your gatherings. The smell repels them and they’ll be looking for a less caffeinated place to hang out. I will be traveling with a pound of ground coffee everywhere this summer! How easy is this? I just sprinkle it around our deck in the summer where we eat! Super quick to do and super easy!


2. Cinnamon sprinkles. Cinnamon sprinklesSprinkle cinnamon on surfaces where you’ve seen ants congregate. The domestic spice acts as a dermal irritant to the tiny insects and they’ll be working their way towards sweeter surroundings. This one is a great one because most of us have cinnamon in our spice cabinets, so it’s easy for people to do! I have been sprinkling on plates and setting up where near we will be eating and enjoying guests! The smell is yummy (especially if you’re a cinnamon fan!).


3.  Don’t throw away citrus peels. Orange PeelsLemons, limes and oranges may add zip to your favorite drinks. But ants see them as the enemy. Fresh citrus peels are toxic to the fungi that ants feed on. Spread them around the areas where you see ants meeting up and they’ll be looking for a new place to congregate. My kids love giving me the peels now from their oranges to keep the ants away! While we’re at our pool club we keep them out around the picnic table so ants will stay away! GREAT tip to know for the summer if you’re not at home, too!


4.  Draw the line and ants won’t cross it. How to Keep Ants AwayWhen it comes to ants ruining your get summer gatherings, you need to draw the line. Do it with chalk! Block their entryway with a thin line of chalk or baby powder. Talcum powder is a natural ant repellent. We always have chalk on hand at home for the kids, so this is an easy one for us!


 5.  Pouch Up – My favorite tip for the summer (and beyond)! How to Keep Ants AwayEarthKind’s® Stay Away® Ants is a great natural alternative way to get rid of ants. The pouches are made from lemongrass, peppermint, and thyme essential oils along with plant cellulose fiber from corn cobs – so they smell great as well. How to Keep Ants AwayStay Away® Ants works by using the ants’ highly sensitive scent receptors, found on their antennae, against them.  Ants use scent trails to communicate with each other, to find food and to mark the paths they travel. Stay Away® Ants will block the scents they are searching for and make them avoid the treated. What I love, love, love is that the Stay Away® Ants repellent pouches are non-toxic, so I’m not worried about using them at home with 5 kids around. The pouches have been tested and proven safe and effective and I’m not kidding… they smell sensational, too! I have been following advice right from Earthkind, use Stay Away® Ants pouches wherever ant activity has been seen.  One pouch should suffice in small areas such as pantries or cupboards; more may be necessary in larger areas or in places with high rates of air exchange.  Replace pouches every 30 days or when the scent is no longer noticeable. Check out their other products, too! They are ALL about keeping your house safe naturally.

Enjoy YOUR summer fun outdoors with family and friends ANT-FREE! I love that there are natural ways to do this and you don’t have to worry about harsh and unsafe chemicals doing the trick. As a mom, this is just such helpful and important information to spread along to other parents out there!

Here’s to the SUMMER! And here’s to learning How to Keep Ants Away without harsh chemicals!!

Fun, memorable, safe and ant-free!

See some of my other posts on NATURAL BEAUTY AND PRODUCTS:

Nearly Natural Home Decor

Eclair Naturals Beauty Products

Boulder Baby Company

Disclosure: Sponsored post with Earthkind. All opinions are 100% my own.

About Audrey

Audrey McClelland has been a digital influencer since 2005. She’s a mom of 5 and shares tips on her three favorite things: parenting, fashion and beauty. She’s also a Contemporary Romance Author.

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7 Comments

  1. 6.27.17

    These are GREAT tips. We get ants every summer, and it’s soo annoying and my OCD goes into high gear! lol I love the idea of using natural products to get rid of ants versus a lot of chemicals.

  2. 6.27.17

    I just love all of these natural remedies. I can’t stand ants or any bug really, they drive me nuts. I will be sharing these tips with my family.

  3. 6.27.17
    Kristi said:

    Great suggestions, i hate using chemicals so thank you for the natural ideas. This year has been bad for ants in our area.

  4. 6.27.17
    Desiree Lopez said:

    I didn’t realize cinnamon was an ant repellent. I will have to try that one out in my kitchen! My kids enjoy doing the chalk drawings to keep them outside too.

  5. 6.28.17
    Jennifer said:

    That is great! I live in the Miami area, and down here, if you have a drink on the counter for longer than 5 minutes, you’ll find an ant in it. I have to try this.

  6. 6.28.17
    Leah said:

    Great tips! When my kids were much younger and we had a sandbox, we used to put cinnamon in with the sand because it helped to keep the ants away from the sandbox!

  7. 6.29.17

    I have a horrendous ant problem around my house. I use Borax when the ants get in my kitchen. I try to love nature but really want to kill all the ants invading my house!

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