Gardeners urged to do 1 thing to get rid of ants

With the weather starting to improve as April edges towards May, Brits across the country will spending more time in their - if they're lucky enough to have one. However, those that venturing into their backyard may be greeted by unwelcome guests:

The crawling critters can appear to get everywhere, with many nesting in plant pots and compost bins. That means your flowers may be swimming in six-legged bugs before long. The good news is, the ants aren't a danger to your children or pets, but nevertheless .

It is important to note that ants are part of the eco-system and so support other vital life in your garden. That's why the solution to your ant 'problem' is not to try and totally rid your garden of them at all costs. You can use insecticides, but can introduce chemicals into your garden that harms other life.

Some people use boiling water to kill ants, but according to the experts such measures aren't necessary and can do more harm good. The green-fingered gurus instead advise lightly watering your plant pots to let the ants know that they're not in a good place to set up camp.

Gardening supremo Alan Titchmarsh also shared his tips on how to ensure compost heaps are relatively ant-free: "What ants like are cool dry conditions, which is why you often find them in the lawn, particularly in sort of sheltered places. So as far as your compost heap goes, if you can bear to mix it up every now and again that will disturb the ants, it will bring the eggs to the surface, birds will come in and feed on them."

He added: "They also tend to like it dry, so giving the heap a good watering will help to discourage them. And if you cover over the top that will make sure that heat builds up. Ants are not going to like it if it's too hot. So: hot, moist, and mix. They're the best ways of making sure you don't get ants in your compost heap."