Ant Farm Tips

Like many insects, ants live in colonies with a queen. Purchasing or building an ant farm is a good way to learn about insect colonies and teach your children about them. An insect colony is easy to build with a few common household goods, including sand, peat, a glass jar or a fish aquarium.

  1. Construction

    • To construct your ant colony, fill a jar or aquarium with dirt. Use sand for darker-colored ants or peat for lighter-colored ants to make them more visible. Slightly dampen the soil so that it won't collapse on your ant tunnels. You can find ants in your backyard or purchase them. If you are trying to find your own ant colony, you may have difficulty locating the queen. Ant queens rarely leave their tunnels, except during summer when they make a nuptial flight. If you purchase ants, they may come with a queen. Before putting the ants in the jar, refrigerate them for five minutes. Because ants are cold-blooded, this slows their metabolism and keeps them from hurting one another when they are put in the jar.

    Water

    • Water your ants by placing two to three drops of water in the ant farm every day. Don't give them more than this, because too much water can pool on the surface and drown the ants. Once a week, you can give your ants sugar water to boost their energy. Mix a pinch of sugar in a teaspoon of water. Again, only feed the ants a few drops of this concoction.

    Food

    • What you feed your ants depends largely on the type of ants in your ant farm. Harvester ants are the most common ants available for purchase. Harvester ants can thrive on small seeds, fruits or vegetables. But since they are tiny creatures, they don't need to eat much. Slivers of apple, celery and other fruits and vegetables that are not mushy are the best type of food to feed this ant species. Give them pieces that are about the size of the head of a pin. Ants will also eat a drop of honey mixed with water or a crumb of bread. Replace any uneaten fruit or vegetable after two days with a fresh chunk to prevent mold from growing. Mold can kill your ants.

    Temperature

    • Your ants will live longer if you keep your ant farm in a cool environment. Ants are cold-blooded creatures that prefer temperatures ranging from 60 to 70 degrees. To keep your ant farm in this temperature range, keep it off windowsills and out of the sunlight. Also keep your ant farm away from strong light sources such as lamps.