Talkback: Those wasps are still going strong - Talkback

12/03/2007 at 18:25

We have them all over the place. Been told that old fashioned moth balls, dropped into their run, are a deterent as they hate them...have the moth balls but haven't tried them, as yet, I imagine it would need to be dry weather and we haven't had that in a long time. Our dogs used to deal with them but they have gotten lazy in their old age. Then we got a murdering kitten, who would sit out watching the mole hills, waiting for a mole to appear. Used to find the bodies in the morning. It's a shame because they are beautiful animals but hell hath no fury like a gardener with a mole problem.

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19/10/2007 at 19:52

we had a wasp nest at the bottom of our garden in the lawn I decided to leave it be as my garden is 140ft long so it was well away from the house and my kids are all grown up now so it wasn't a danger to them. Yesterday when I went to check my compost bins I saw that the small entrance to the nest had been burrowed down by about a foot I can only asume it was the foxes that visit me every night.

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20/10/2007 at 20:40

Reply to Faith: You don't say where you live, but it will be interesting to see just how long they can survive in southern England. Since I wrote my notes the nights have been clear and it is noticably much colder these last few mornings, but warm during the day. It might take a much longer cold spell to first get rid of their prey, then the wasps will die off.

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22/10/2007 at 13:22

What is the best way to act when a wasp is near? I tell my children to stand still and it will fly away when it discovers you are not food! But they still squeal and flap their arms around...

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23/10/2007 at 08:29

Reply to Frieda: Flapping arms around is the worst thing to do. Stand still and they will ignore you. If you find several buzzing round, you might be in the flight path back to the nest so move sideways and backwards away from the danger. If they are up to it, put a blob of jam or honey on a plate and get your kids to watch the wasps feeding. When they see that the wasps are just after a bit of sweetness, they will soon realize that the wasps are not after them.

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23/10/2007 at 17:40

The wasps are still active after lots of frosty nights. They could have burrowed into the bottom of the manure heap, and I am wondering if it is extra warm there. I managed to get a barrow load of the manure early in the morning before they were about. As you say I suppose the cold nights will kill off their prey. I saw a shrew wander towards their hole and am wondering if they would have stung it? (I live in Hammerwood, Nr. East Grinstead, West Sussex).

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23/10/2007 at 18:07

I have been amazed this year to see so many wasps at the bird bath - when it needs topping up they almost queue waiting for the water to arrive. They are also stripping my garden fence, presumably for nesting material. Still very active to date.

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07/11/2007 at 10:06

My wasps are still active, and still foraging. Has anyone noticed theirs dying off?

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09/11/2007 at 12:17

A word of warning as to where you store your gardening gloves, last week I put mine on that are kept in the greenhouse and was stung by a young lady who had decided my glove was a good place to spend winter. Valerie.

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13/11/2007 at 17:13

There is wasp nest (somewhere) just outside my glass room. The wasps have managed to find a way into the glassroom, and there is no sign of them stopping!! There is normally about 30 dead wasps each day when I return home. My local council are refusing to help as they decommission their wasp controllers in October!! Shall I get a private company? Or wait until they all die?

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19/11/2007 at 19:39

Reply to Paul: Just wait. These are either workers, in which case you will not have long to wait before they all die off, or queens seeking hibernation sites, in which case they will soon have all left the nest and the supply will fail. Keep an eye out next spring, in case some have successfully sheltered in your house and are roused in April or May. These will be queens seeking to establish new nests and you can safely let them out of the window. They will repay you by nesting nearby and keeping your garden free of many pests next year.

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25/12/2007 at 21:20

I live high up on moorland and have a very exposed garden, I was very alarmed to see only two wasps this year.

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14/08/2008 at 15:33

Referring back to the wasp problem - I am unable to use my back garden at the moment because of the wasps. They are all over a large tree and a bush underneath. Hover flies are also there. Wasps are also on the lawn and on the paths (one climbed onto my foot this afternoon! Horrid!) Any advice on how to get them to go away?

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28/08/2008 at 20:24

Hover flies are harmless, but sounds like the wasps have a bike in the tree or bush. Maybe you should get a professional in to get rid of it, specially if they are making life miserable. My neighbour has one and wont do a thing about it. My apple tree is getting eaten and its not nice for me and the kids.

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21/09/2008 at 10:40

We have an extremely active wasps nest in a flower planter, I have never seen so much activity. Can anyone tell me if they are likely to die off and will it be safe to dig over the soil once the activity has ceased. I know they are very good at keeping other pests at bay but it is almost impossible to do work near by for fear of disturbing them in a big way and being attacked.

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16/09/2009 at 10:16

I was stung by a wasp yesterday that had managed to crawl done my top! Can you tell me when they will stop attacking and die off.

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21/09/2009 at 10:57

Reply to Debbie Wasp nest activity very much depends on the precise location. Many years ago I found a queen wasp 'hibernating' in August, indicating that the home nest that she emerged from would be in decline then. Elsewhere wasp nests can be active into October. What ever time they cease, they all die off except the mated queens, which then hide until founding new nests from scratch next spring.

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17/11/2010 at 19:38

We have just had to get in the pest control after finding wasp after wasp emerging from somewhere inside the house. He couldn't find the nest and says he's never known this so late after so many cold snaps. It's now November 17th and my wife killed around 50 or more today. We live in Northumberland. Any thoughts?

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03/10/2011 at 05:55

Have just got in from walking the dog (6am Oct 3rd - still dark) and have found the back door teaming with wasps crawling upwards. Husband says 5 dived into the bathroom when he opened a window. It has been very hot this past weekend in the Midlands, but I've never seen so many wasps appear active at this time of year - they seem very sleepy. Is it the surprising weather conditions making them swarm? Are they attracted to the lights?

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03/10/2011 at 08:13

Reply to Clarelady Not sure what's going on. There are lots of wasps still about, a mixture of workers still foraging (rather late for them, perhaps the brood season has been extended by warm weather) and the new sexual generation of males and queens. Wasps are not particularly attracted to lights, but when the queens have mated, they look for hibernation quarters, often indoors, in lofts, in sheds etc. The males and new queens do not return to the old nest, so it is they you may have congregating after their party yesterday.