[MamaWolfInWV]

I was just wondering if any of yall are being over-run with WASPS this spring? We normally just have millions of little lady bug/ beatles annoying us to death but those have not been a problem here this year, instead we now have WASPS out the wazoo, especially the huge red ones. Does anyone have any tips on how to get rid of them?

 

[justgojumpit]

spray their nests, one at a time. you could also put out soda laced with a little wasp killer. this would also kill off all your pollinators such as honey bees and bumble bees, which wouldn't be a good thing at all. I vote for the spray...

 

[Guest]

What’s your problem with wasps? Paper wasps are a year round insect here in Florida. They are pollinators like honeybees. They are also known to drink the blood of caterpillars (that eat your plants). Parasitic wasps lay their young inside of aphids (that eat your plants). Wasps are a beneficial insect to plants. If you are afraid that you will get stung, all I can tell you is I’ve never been stung by a wasp in my life and they land on me every so often. The only reason why people get stung by bees and wasps is either because they are historical and waving there arms around or they attack the nest. Bees will also attack you if you where brown (the color of a bear). The only insect that has ever stung me was a hornet and it happened to be three of them all at once. I steeped on board on the poach from which they had hung there nest from. I say keep they wasps.

 

[Gayle in KY]

We're being inundated with both wasps and bumble bees. I've been spraying the wasp nests, but it hasn't made a noticeable difference, yet.

 

[Herb.]

We have a lot of them in an old greenhouse we use for storage, and the adjoining shop. I go in and out several times a day and they do not seem to mind but once the misses sees them I have to get out the dish soap and water, spray them all and knock the nests down. Don't like doing that but I guess with all the grandkids here maybe it is best.

 

[comfortablynumb]

yes, my area is over run with white anglo saxon prodistants...
Are paper WASPs the ones always trying to hand you literature thru your front door?

 

[littlelad]

yes, my area is over run with white anglo saxon prodistants...
Are paper WASPs the ones always trying to hand you literature thru your front door?

I just loved your post...was thinking along the same line ;o)))))))))))))

 

[SteveD(TX)]

What’s your problem with wasps? Paper wasps are a year round insect here in Florida. They are pollinators like honeybees. They are also known to drink the blood of caterpillars (that eat your plants). Parasitic wasps lay their young inside of aphids (that eat your plants). Wasps are a beneficial insect to plants. If you are afraid that you will get stung, all I can tell you is I’ve never been stung by a wasp in my life and they land on me every so often. The only reason why people get stung by bees and wasps is either because they are historical and waving there arms around or they attack the nest. Bees will also attack you if you where brown (the color of a bear). The only insect that has ever stung me was a hornet and it happened to be three of them all at once. I steeped on board on the poach from which they had hung there nest from. I say keep they wasps.

Sorry, but WHAT A LOAD OF CRAPOLA.

Bee/wasp huggers are hilarious. Just because you've never been stung by a wasp in your life doesn't mean it doesn't happen to tons of other people. Let me say that I've been stung by wasps a couple of dozen times over the years. In EVERY instance, the little devils come out of nowhere, I never see them, and they zap me. Get near their nest, and they attack. Waving my arms and swatting HELPS. Bees I don't mind, except for those pesky carpenter bees and I know the males don't sting. But I kill 'em anyway cause they harass me when I try to get the tractor or golf cart out of the shed. Honeybees are fine. I just ignore them. And they are "wonderful creatures"......blah, blah, blah. But I hate wasps..... I say KILL ALL WASPS. :yeeha:

 

[barbarake]

Gee, I hate to admit it but I don't know the difference between wasps, hornet, yellowjackets, honey bees and bumblebees (have I missed any?). But I think I know carpenter bees - they're the big round ones that chew small holes (about the size of a pencil eraser) in raw wood, right??

I'm scared of flying bugs - morbidly scared. I'm one of those people that freak around bugs. When I was around 10 or so, my sister played a joke on me. To make a long story short, I was lured under a tree, the tree was shaken and I was covered by hundreds of japanese beetles. I don't remember this at all but my family has confirmed that this happened. Evidently I have repressed the memory but have been left with this irrational fear. I can control it if I have a moment to calm down but am a basketcase if taken by surprise.

 

[MamaWolfInWV]

Well, dear unregistered most bees I don't mind much. They don't bother me and I take almost every step possible not to bother them I am actually quite fond of Honeybees, they truly are wonderful little creatures, the WASPS on the other hand are a whole other thing. See the thing is they have some how gotten the idea that my house is a WASP boarding house in which they have taken up residence and with two small kids running around and husband that swells like a balloon and is sick for two days at the sight of a bee that isn't a good thing :no: . Now, the WASPS we have here in WV must be from a whole different tribe than friendly, peace-loving WASPS you have or something because they will sting you and not just because you squished it or swatted at it. Since you are so fond of them I would box them up and ship them to you but I think Raid WASP Spray from Kmart is cheaper than the current shipping rate for WASPS . Sorry

 

[GeorgeK]

Don't lump wasps and bees together. There are many species of each, and they each have their own particular patterns. Some wasps are pollinators, not all. Some prey on spiders, some prey on bees, etc. Some wasps just like to attack and require no provocation, especially apparently against people with Type-O blood, less so for A and even less for B (same for mosquitos by the way). If you are near their nest or food they will be more likely to sting and can do so repeatedly. In that event standing still just gets you stung more. The different species of Hornets are types of wasp.

Bees dont see colors in the same way that people do. A particular shade of brown to us may not be brown to bees. Bees (bumble and honeybees) generally are not provoked by lighter colors and may be more agressive around darker colors. For some reason they seem to hate wool. They normally will ignore you if you stand still and don't disturb them. They don't want to attack because for them it is a suicide mission. They die when they sting.

What’s your problem with wasps? Paper wasps are a year round insect here in Florida. They are pollinators like honeybees. They are also known to drink the blood of caterpillars (that eat your plants). Parasitic wasps lay their young inside of aphids (that eat your plants). Wasps are a beneficial insect to plants. If you are afraid that you will get stung, all I can tell you is I’ve never been stung by a wasp in my life and they land on me every so often. The only reason why people get stung by bees and wasps is either because they are historical and waving there arms around or they attack the nest. Bees will also attack you if you where brown (the color of a bear). The only insect that has ever stung me was a hornet and it happened to be three of them all at once. I steeped on board on the poach from which they had hung there nest from. I say keep they wasps.

 

[fordy]

................Paper wasps are the main stingers in my opinion. Those large , dark red wasps are fully capable of stinging but I have found them to much LESS aggressive than paper wasps. They seem to like to build their nests down low , close too the ground. I mow about 3 and 1\2 acres out of a total of 5 and every year I study the landscape very closely looking for those green and black Bumblebee's as they nest down in Hole's in the ground. Don't EVER drive your riding Mower over their HOLE. They will emerge Mucho Pronto and their Sting is a very painful experience. This happened too me about 4 years ago and I hit the Eject button on my riding mower and it kept going until the Kill switch stopped the motor. I didn't realize I could utter so many dirty words in Swahelli (sp), Polish, and Hebrew all at once. ........fordy...

 

[desnri]

If you want to get rid of the wasps without using poison, try orange oil. You can usually buy it at the feed store. If you spray it on the wasps, Run! It will eventually kill them. If you spray their nests, it will deter them from returning. It has taken us a few years of using orange oil around the home, but we have been seeing less and less each year. Mix about 2 oz. to a 32 oz spray bottle. Hope this helps. BTW we don't kill the bees.

 

[Guest]

Sorry, but WHAT A LOAD OF CRAPOLA.

Bee/wasp huggers are hilarious. Just because you've never been stung by a wasp in your life doesn't mean it doesn't happen to tons of other people. Let me say that I've been stung by wasps a couple of dozen times over the years. In EVERY instance, the little devils come out of nowhere, I never see them, and they zap me. Get near their nest, and they attack. Waving my arms and swatting HELPS. Bees I don't mind, except for those pesky carpenter bees and I know the males don't sting. But I kill 'em anyway cause they harass me when I try to get the tractor or golf cart out of the shed. Honeybees are fine. I just ignore them. And they are "wonderful creatures"......blah, blah, blah. But I hate wasps..... I say KILL ALL WASPS.

First of all I'm not a Bee/wasp huggers or any other ignorant name you want to try and affix to me. If you want to kill wasps go a head, it doesn’t bother me. You could spend you entire life hunting wasps and they’ll always come back. You need to learn to live with other animals. Do you keep a cow, goat, or sheep for milk? Honey bees for pollination, honey, and wax? Do you keep any other animals that benefit you? I figured I’d just let you know the beneficial services they provide you that you take for granite. I like a lot of large healthy fruits in my grove and large plentiful vegetables in my garden. If you don’t, go a head and kill all your pollinators. You and your family will be the only ones to suffer from your actions.

For those allergic to wasps and bees, I understand your grudge. If you become extremely ill or can die from their sting then do what you need to do. The Risk outweighs the benefit in that case. But for you people that kill wasps just out of fear, I will just have to mark you up to another ignorant person. If I happened to be afraid of cows and I came to your ranch and killed your heard you would see things a little differently. If I told you, I hate cows they are scary. If there are any of them around I shoot them and leave them to rot. I don’t think that argument would make you say “Oh, if that is your reason I have a few hundred more head on my other pasture down the road feel free to exterminate those nasty beasts”. LOL

 

[SteveD(TX)]

... But for you people that kill wasps just out of fear, I will just have to mark you up to another ignorant person. If I happened to be afraid of cows and I came to your ranch and killed your heard you would see things a little differently. If I told you, I hate cows they are scary. If there are any of them around I shoot them and leave them to rot. I don’t think that argument would make you say “Oh, if that is your reason I have a few hundred more head on my other pasture down the road feel free to exterminate those nasty beasts”. LOL

If my neighbor's cows were flying around my head trying to sting me, I would kill them, too. Good analogy. Comparing wasps to cows..... :haha:

KILL ALL WASPS. :yeeha:

 

[slfisher]

I spray paper wasp nests when I see them. I have a four year old and I don't want to have to worry about her getting stung.