I have developed a method for dealing with wasps that does not involve chemicals of any kind - even natural ones . I call it Hand-in-Hand Combat because it involves battle but with the intent on encouraging predatory wasps to live along side of us . Just not too close . It involves the killing of embryonic wasps at times but not the queens who produce them .
So , first we need to understand one thing about the life cycle of wasps . Wasps are either solitary or colonizing . Hornets and Yellow Jackets form colonies . Red Wasps and Mud Daubers are solitary wasps . They both build nests and strive to reproduce . They both sting largely to defend their larvae . For the purpose of this discussion though , the most important point is this : Only the queens survive the winter . Unlike bees , the colony does not over winter . Each spring the solitary queen begins the nest building and reproduction cycle anew .
The next thing to understand is the aggression potential of these wasps . All animals understand instinctively the risks of attacking another being . They will risk their own life and have built in calculators that weigh the risks . So , wasps are most aggressive when there are larvae in the nest and become increasingly aggressive proportionate to the number of young . This is predictable by the passing of the spring , summer , and fall seasons . As the season progresses the size and number of the larvae increases {and in the case of colonizing wasps - workers} and so does their aggression levels . They will almost never sting away from the nest except if one were to grab one or step on one accidentally . One exception where they become aggressive away from the nest is late in the season when they may defend a food source such as carrion or fruit . The hive at late season is busy producing queens to survive the winter . The metabolic needs of the last queens developing in the nests may trigger stings at the food source.
The goal now is to encourage wasps to build their nest on a maple branch at the bottom of your garden space and not under the eaves of your porch. The most effective time for you to encourage the queen wasp to do this is early spring . Observe their activity at this early point in their growth cycle . The lone queen chooses a spot and begins to build a nest . The easiest to deal with are the solitary paper and mud wasps . Solitary paper wasps build a honey-combed shaped nest dangling from what looks like a stick . Mud daubers build little mud tubes parallel to a flat surface . Simply take your hand or a stick and knock them down . Early in spring their will be no larvae and the queen still has time to move on and build a new nest somewhere else . The queens are not as aggressive at this point .
Colonizing wasps in early spring are a different story but still less agressive at this point . Bald-Faced hornets will build a dangling paper hive that increases in size and activity as the season rolls along . As new larvae hatch they will contribute to building the paper structure so the queen can focus on egg laying . But early in the spring the queen is just getting started , may be alone , and you can knock the nest down . If you notice activity from the downed hive stay away until it ceases . The wasps will not continue to nurture a paper hive on the ground . I recommend this for early spring only !
European Yellow hornets and Yellow Jackets will seek out spaces to build such as holes in trees and between logs on a
wood pile . They like cracks and crevices and may seek out your home for these . Yellow jackets will move into gopher and mouse holes in the ground but they don't dig . These nests are trickier to spot in the early season . For weeks the only activity you will notice is that one lone queen going in and out bringing in protein for the larvae and paper pulp for the structure . You can deal with these nests by dismantling the structures . Knock down the wood pile . Dig up the mouse hole . The entry ways into your home are more problematic . The simplest solution is to seal the entry and fill the gaps . Be aware that there may be an alternate exit for trapped wasps that may lead inside your home . A large colony finding a way into your home is not the goal .The problem with spotting these wasp colonies is that often we do not see them until late season when there is busy activity at the nest entrance . Then things get dangerous .
I will end my suggestions for colony wasps at the early season mark . Although tearing apart a yellow jacket nest is effective at any point , my suggestion is to admit we lost the battle this year . Steer clear of the colony . Too dangerous . Realize that only a few queens from that hive will survive the winter . They do not
reuse the nests the next year . They are not drawn to return to their birth sites . You will become that much more savy next year . There are numerous "natural methods" for coping with colony wasps on the net . I am not against those methods per se but I am proposing a 100% chemical free method here .
As far as dangling solitary wasps and mud daubers . I knock them down all season long . I use a long stick or broom handle late in the year . The wasp will likely sting only so many feet from the nest . They don't go on a rampage like killer bees . In my
experience they abandon the downed nests quickly . I squish the nest and sweep it away . The queen will not be able to start anew after a certain point but they live multiple years . She will have a chance next year to find that maple tree away from the porch .
I have been rarely stung and have been swatting down these nests for years . I have only been stung when I did not see the nest and surprised the queen . So , I start demolishing nests early in spring . We have many species of wasps flourishing but none on my porch . Last summer I sat and watched a queen carrying lime green caterpillars to her young . She had them tucked alongside her abdomen and would enter the former hole of a carpenter bee she was borrowing . She would quickly depart . You could almost set your watch according to her return within a few minutes with another caterpillar . Each time I checked throughout the season she hard at work debugging some plant somewhere . This spring I was glad to see her or one of her daughters was back .
If you are allergic to wasps more than likely you are allergic to only one type . I would not risk it though . Get some other fool to practice this method for you . If you don't know any fools personally I will travel with a stick almost anywhere throughout the season . For a small fee and paid expenses . I accept paypal .
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