Question
We just bought and Ixora.  We have it in a pot outside of our apartment.  After a few days of having it there are fir ants all over it.  They don't seem to have hurt the plant, but we have 3 small children.  It seems like they are just feeding off of it, but they may have built a nest in the pot.  What can we do to get rid of them and keep them off the plant?

Answer
Hi Eliza, fire ants build nests under containers, and in them....you need to dump the plant from the existing container (carefully!) and place the plant into a new container away from the original location. This is a common occurance when a contained plant is set in place too long, and it is recomended that contained plants be placed on concrete or paved platforms to avoid this. Nick