Termite Balls and Fig Trees

   For the past couple of years, I have tended to five fig trees that are in large pots.  I just have not had the space to plant them in the yard.  The trees are doing well and even produce figs!  A couple of days ago, I noticed that one of the large trees looked bad.  When I checked, the tree just flopped over!  It was dead! It appeared to have rotted off just below the dirt level.  I tossed it on the burn pile and thought no more about it.

  Today, I needed a large pot for some ginger roots that I had sprouted.  I remembered the dead fig tree and thought that the pot would be perfect!  So...I emptied out the dirt and found...a ball!  Yep, I found what appeared to be a spherical clump of...something.  Alrighty then.  As I am prone to do, I investigated.  Uh, oh!  Not good!  I never dreamed that termites could be the cause of my fig tree's demise!  Yep, that "ball" was a termite nest!  Now what?  

  The ball was placed in a bucket and all of the surrounding dirt was put back in the large flower pot.  I am happy to say that there are no more termites.  I boiled them.  Since the bug spray did not kill the termites, I took a hint from an uncle.  Boiling water poured on ants kills them so I knew it would work on the termites as well.  Plus, the hot water would get rid of any fungus that might have started growing in the dirt.

  Now, my ginger roots are happily in their new termite-free home!  My next job is to repot those other monstrous trees and check them for critters.  This is something I had not planned on doing but is obviously necessary.  Who would think?  Termites killed my fig tree!