Do Ants Eat Grass?

Surprisingly – no, ants do not eat grass. If you see ants around your grass and you’re worrying about it, don’t panic just yet – they likely are avoiding eating the grass entirely. However, they could be burrowing underground and accidentally destroying grass whilst they build their subterranean homes. 

Most ants’ diets typically consist of leaves, seeds, nuts and the like. Read on to learn more about the relationship between grass and ants.

Grass is a plant, so why don’t humans and many other animals eat it regularly? Doctors recommend we eat lots of plants and vegetables, so why exactly isn’t it a part of most of our diets?

In actuality, grass (especially wild grass) does have nutrients – it has vitamins A, C, and some B vitamins, as well as several minerals. However, it also contains something called lignin, and a lot of it. Humans can process lignin in small qualities, but grass contains so much that it usually passes through without giving any nutrients. Meanwhile, other animals like cows, with their famed multiple stomachs, are able to eat grass and thrive on it. 

Although many animals can thrive on diets consisting largely of grass (see a full list of animals that eat grass here), for many animals including hamsters and humans, grass isn’t a viable source of sustenance. 

Why? This is just the genetics of an ant’s body – namely, that they do not have the ability to digest the cellulose in grass. A few other reasons: 

• Since they live underground, they aren’t exposed to grass as often as other plant materials. 
• They prefer sweet foods.
• They aren’t able to nibble on grass, their mouths are made to gobble up small insects and softer plants.

Preventing ants from eating grass is possible with these steps: 

• Keep your lawn free of debris that might attract ants. This includes things like food scraps especially. 
• Trim plants that touch your lawn since ants use these as bridges to get onto your grass. Think of your lawn as a moat that you’d like to build a perimeter around to keep ants out. 

Use an ant insecticide – this is Amazon’s highest rated ant insecticide – please keep in mind though, if you have pets to be very careful that they don’t graze on grass you’ve sprayed with insecticide.

• Ants do not eat grass
• However, if you see ants on your grass, it’s likely they’re burrowing holes underground and damaging grass roots 
• Keep your lawn free of debris and use an insecticide if needed (avoid having your pets on the lawn in this case) 

Can Ants Destroy A Lawn?

Yes, ants can and do destroy lawns. Sometimes they’re just passing through, but if you consistently see trails of ants, it’s likely they’re burrowing and making holes underground and destroying plant roots. 

What Do Ants Eat?

The typical ant diet consists of leaves, nuts, and seeds. They also like to eat anything sweet, like fruit. So if they get inside your home, they’ll eat any dessert or sweet thing laying around. 

Do Ants Eat Grass Roots? 

Yes, ants do eat grass roots. They also burrow through grass roots while making their underground homes so in this way, they doubly destroy grass roots. 

Do Ants Eat Grass Seed? 

Yes, ants do eat grass seed. It’s a valuable source of protein for them. Most ant types will eat up any grass seed in sight and ruin your garden this way. 

Do Ants Kill Grass? 

Inadvertently, yes. By building homes under grass, they destroy it when they bulldoze through grass roots to make their homes. 

If you have any further questions, feel free to email me!

Related articles: 

• Do Worms Eat Grass?
• Do Snails Eat Grass? 
• Do Pigs Eat Grass?