How an Ant Trail Reaches an Ealing Kitchen
Paved gardens along Ealing's avenues
The generous gardens on the avenues around Ealing Broadway are mostly paved or slabbed at the edges, and that's exactly where black garden ants like to nest — the ground stays warm and undisturbed beneath. A scout finding a gap by a patio door can have the rest of the colony following the same scent line within days.
Shifted frames in Acton's older houses
Acton's Victorian window and door frames have moved slightly with the building over a century, and the resulting gaps give ants a direct route from an outside wall into a kitchen without crossing any garden at all. Winged ants appearing indoors on a warm afternoon usually mean a nest nearby has just matured.
Signs to Look For
- A steady trail of ants heading to and from a food source
- Small mounds of fine soil near patios, paving or skirting boards
- Ants appearing around windows, doors or kitchen units, especially in warm weather
- Winged ants indoors, which can signal a nest close by
Closing the Gap Ants Are Using
Once a nest's been treated, sealing whatever gap the trail was using stops next summer's scouts finding the same route.
