Though spring and summer are beautiful, they also bring many seasonal dangers, with wasps being among the most terrifying. Aside from wasps being more likely to sting you than other bees, they are also highly irritating, buzzing in your ears and lingering over your picnic. Below are some solutions to your wasp problem:
Utilize Soap And Water
You can eliminate tiny wasp nests with soap and water to avoid using commercial insecticides. You can spray the nests with a solution by adding two teaspoons of dish soap to water in a spray bottle. The mixture will block inhalation pores, and the wasps will die immediately.
Fill In The Gaps
Wasps nest in crevices and other low spots on the ground, so it’s a good idea to seal up any openings in your home’s foundation. Wasps can cause a lot of damage to your house, so keep these sealed and filled.
Put Up Wasp Traps
Setting up a wasp trap is one of the most common and efficient methods to eliminate wasps in your yard. Wasps will be drawn to the baits because of the fluids inside. Wasps that try to enter the trap get caught in the mesh and drown.
Note: Wasp traps are efficient, but the accumulation of dead wasps can make them appear unappealing. You should place them far from any outdoor furniture and replace them frequently.
Grow Wasp-Repellent Plants
Planting wasp-repellent plants such as rosemary, thyme, eucalyptus, spearmint, and citronella around your house are one strategy for warding off these pests. You can plant them anywhere wasps have been a problem, but particularly close to your home. Pretty and effective wasp deterrents include flowering plants like marigolds, geraniums, and pennyroyals.
Eliminate Emerging Insects
You can use a pesticide you buy at the store to get rid of a single wasp. When you spot a wasp, spray it with pesticide, taking care to apply it per the product’s instructions.
Wasp Nest Spraying
Use commercially available wasp nest spray on active nests near your house or property. Wearing protective gear and spraying the colony in the late evening, when the wasps are dormant and both the workers and queen are present, will yield the best results. Get a wasp spray with an extended nozzle to attack the insects from a safe distance. It’s best to spray the nest several times over a few days.
Manage Potential Breeding Sites
You can spray the regions around current nests to discourage further nesting. Wasp nesting areas include your deck, pool, patio, playset, and wood fence, so spraying these areas with residual liquid insecticides from your local home or hardware shop is a good idea. In doing so, you prevent further nesting activity.
Talk To A Professional
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, on small nests. Add about two teaspoons of dish soap to water in a spray bottle and soak the nest. The solution blocks the pores wasps breathe through, so they die quickly. It is a reasonable alternative to a commercial insecticide when the nest is small and you can reach it safely.
Late evening, when the wasps are dormant and both the workers and the queen are in the nest. Wear protective clothing and use a spray with an extended nozzle so you can treat from a distance. Plan on repeating the application over a few days rather than counting on one pass.
Rosemary, thyme, eucalyptus, spearmint and citronella all help when planted near the house and around spots where wasps have been a problem. Flowering options like marigolds, geraniums and pennyroyal work too. Plants reduce wasp interest in an area, but they will not remove a nest that is already there.
Many species nest in crevices and low spots on the ground, so seal openings in your foundation. Others build on decks, patios, pool areas, playsets and wood fences. Spraying those surfaces with a residual liquid insecticide discourages new nests from going up in the same places.
A small, low nest you can reach and back away from is usually manageable with soap spray or a wasp nest spray. Leave large nests, nests inside walls or under eaves, and anything high up to a professional. If anyone in the house is allergic to stings, do not attempt it at all.