Fire ants for Christmas

This past summer I came up with a clever idea for some Christmas gifts using succulents in creative containers.   They were looking pretty good by late fall.  I made the decision to put them in the cold frame until it was time to give them away because the cold frame mimics desert conditions (very hot during the day/cool at night).  This week,  I decided to get them out to do whatever pruning needed to be done to get them ready for gifting.  They looked wonderful until I picked them up.  Suddenly, my hands were covered in fire ants!  The ants had decided my cold frame would be a perfect wintering place too.  Even though I fed those pesky critters an excellent pesticide, I can't risk giving any of my friends or family fire ants for Christmas.  Time to go shopping for some traditional gifts.