Lawn care - ant colony - recommendations for company to treat lawn

Does anyone have a recommendation for a company that can treat a lawn for ants? There is a pretty large colony under our front yard, and it has to go -- I think it is killing a beautiful pink dogwood tree that we love, and killing our lawn. Plus ants all over our front steps, and they gradually are coming into the house. Last summer I used bait traps and they seemed successful, but now the ant mounds have reappeared, and I want to take action as soon as possible. I spoke to the lawn care company trugreen and they said they do not treat ants.

Generally no one plays in the front yard, so pesticides are ok if the only real solution. Thanks very much for any suggestions!

Buckingham pest control?

If you are at all interested in DYI the stuff below has killed everything I've come across. Just a few squirts at each entrance will kill the colony including whats below ground. Its not for indoor use although I have used it in the basement for a pesky house centipede problem. Read the warning info at the site and if you like you are welcome to a cap full of mine. That's all thats needed to mix up 2 gallons of the stuff. I spray the foundation seam around the inside perimeter of the house and then again about 3 feet up the wall. I do this twice a year and every bug I've seen in my house has been a dead one. They never make it out of the basement. 

http://www.amazon.com/Bifen-Bifenthrin-Control-Insecticide-Concentrate/dp/B003IMIPF4/ref=sr_1_3?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1430242837&sr=1-3&keywords=insecticide

this stuff works miracles on ants and termites, same exact chemical used by pros.. has solid 5 stars from 300 reviewers for a reason, 3 days and all your ants will be gone -- http://www.amazon.com/Termidor-SC-Termiticide-20-oz/dp/B004FEJ4IQ/ref=sr_1_1?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1430272808&sr=1-1&keywords=termidor+sc

Thanks very much for the replies -- all of these are v. helpful.

GGartrell said:

If you are at all interested in DYI the stuff below has killed everything I've come across. Just a few squirts at each entrance will kill the colony including whats below ground. Its not for indoor use although I have used it in the basement for a pesky house centipede problem. Read the warning info at the site and if you like you are welcome to a cap full of mine. That's all thats needed to mix up 2 gallons of the stuff. I spray the foundation seam around the inside perimeter of the house and then again about 3 feet up the wall. I do this twice a year and every bug I've seen in my house has been a dead one. They never make it out of the basement. 

http://www.amazon.com/Bifen-Bifenthrin-Control-Insecticide-Concentrate/dp/B003IMIPF4/ref=sr_1_3?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1430242837&sr=1-3&keywords=insecticide

 Good info, I have been using this stuff cause you can use it indoors around entryways and in the nooks and crannys. Prior to DIY I was paying twice a year for spraying.

http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/cyzmic-cs-microencapsulated-insecticide-p-1420.html

Cheaper at Amazon also.

prerak77 said:

GGartrell said:

If you are at all interested in DYI the stuff below has killed everything I've come across. Just a few squirts at each entrance will kill the colony including whats below ground. Its not for indoor use although I have used it in the basement for a pesky house centipede problem. Read the warning info at the site and if you like you are welcome to a cap full of mine. That's all thats needed to mix up 2 gallons of the stuff. I spray the foundation seam around the inside perimeter of the house and then again about 3 feet up the wall. I do this twice a year and every bug I've seen in my house has been a dead one. They never make it out of the basement. 

http://www.amazon.com/Bifen-Bifenthrin-Control-Insecticide-Concentrate/dp/B003IMIPF4/ref=sr_1_3?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1430242837&sr=1-3&keywords=insecticide

 Good info, I have been using this stuff cause you can use it indoors around entryways and in the nooks and crannys. Prior to DIY I was paying twice a year for spraying.

http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/cyzmic-cs-microencapsulated-insecticide-p-1420.html

Cheaper at Amazon also.

 That's the stuff I thought I was ordering when I got the Bifen. When the package came and I read the warning label I almost sent the Bifien back. 

I don't think ants eat lawns. So something else might be killing your lawn. Borax works and is the least toxic. Bifenthrin is a very potent long lasting synthetic pyrethroid stronger then permethrin and will kill honey bees and all other beneficial insects.  I think that diatomaceous earth (Concern brand) might work too and is also less toxic. 

Here is the MAterial Safety Data Sheet on Cyzmic  http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/msds/Cyzmic_CS_MSDS.pdf .

 People wonder why Autism is so prevalent......    Here is Bifen MSDS  http://pdf.tirmsdev.com/Web/31/29486/31_29486_MSDS_English_.pdf?download=true .

tourne said:

I don't think ants eat lawns. So something else might be killing your lawn. Borax works and is the least toxic. Bifenthrin is a very potent long lasting synthetic pyrethroid stronger then permethrin and will kill honey bees and all other beneficial insects.  I think that diatomaceous earth (Concern brand) might work too and is also less toxic. 

 You may be right. But my sense is that the colony has grown to live under the entire front lawn--there are mounds everywhere as the summer progresses. I think this must be damaging the root system of the lawn and the tree. In places the lawn is really spongy as well--which is not true of my neighbor's patch of green (separated by a driveway), who gets it sprayed once a year.

Any higher end lawn company thats licenced will do this. That being said you can do it yourself.  First step is to identify the ant in question.  If they are carpenter ants or terminates they heavy chemicals are pretty much the only way to treat them as all the other stuff requires direct contact and will not make it back to the queen. They do sell some baits that sterilize the colony but they require repeat treatments. Other ants , can be treated with less potent chemicals. Some can be applied to the whole lawn.