Wasps

[LadyPakal]

They do eat (well, their young do) greenfly and other insects, as well as pollinating fruit & other flowers, so I can live with them buzzing about - so long as they stay off my dinner long enough to let me eat it. If they try to set up home in the house tho', then I'm afraid they just made a bad mistake...

[Uncle_Barty]

Horrid nasty little things. If there is one in my house, it doersnt survive for long, I can tell you that.

I had 20,000 honey bees in my back garden last week, that wan't so bad, but wasps are just plain aggressive

[Methuselah]

For me, I understand all the 'God's creature' arguments. But, on hearing or seeing a wasp, I resort to sign-language for aliens! :lol:

[Norrance]

I agree with Flagpole, useful, fascinating and fiesty little creatures, although they can be a bit irritating if you're eating outdoors and they want to share.

As an outdoor worker(and as a child, although then I deserved it ) I've been stung dozens of times. A few years ago I was reducing an overgrown hedge with a petrol cutter and, on hearing a tearing sound, thought I'd cut through a newspaper.

I looked up to see where it was just in time to see the wasp nest fall on my head; cue much running about and flailing of arms.

I did that once as well. Halved a large bike in a hedge with a cutter. The wasps swarmed out, ignored me, and attacked the chap following behind raking up the cuttings. He got about 40 stings. Luckily he was an ex Forestry Commission worker and was just about immune to them by then.

Overall I am less disturbed by wasps than most and can tolerate them but will still destroy a bike if they start it in my house or garden to protect the rst of my household. Not been many about this year so far here but one Queen did try and start a nest in my shed in Spring.

[Andy H]

I have just noticed wasps nesting in the patio table, only seen about five of them but they are backwards and forwards with leaves, they seem to be plugging the holes under the table, any idea how i can get rid of them???

[Methuselah]

I have just noticed wasps nesting in the patio table, only seen about five of them but they are backwards and forwards with leaves, they seem to be plugging the holes under the table, any idea how i can get rid of them???

Aye mate. A flamethrower...It worked for me!

Edited July 5, 2009 by Pete Tattum

[Andy H]

Aye mate. A flamethrower...It worked for me!

if i could remember where i last saw my flamethrower i would give it ago

i was thinking of taking the table up the garden and pouring a boiling kettle down the holes

[Methuselah]

if i could remember where i last saw my flamethrower i would give it ago

i was thinking of taking the table up the garden and pouring a boiling kettle down the holes

Hairspray (when ignited) works well. If that's not an option the equation: petrol+match can be very effective.

Are you a fast runner?

[jo200199]

Have seen 1 wasp (tnkgoodness) However, I've seen loads of bees so far this summer.

[Rainy]

SW Bowland. ANDY H. For decades we always used Derris powder via a puffer. That stuff now banned under EU regs, though I believe you can still get it on Ebay. Otherwise the Council pests officer now uses permithrin. You should be able to get that at hardware shops / garden centres. It's used for all sorts of insects such as dog fleas. Not nice though. I'm surprised it's allowed by the EU.

Up here, farming in jungly countryside, I reckon there are more wasps about this year. Though we got shut of 2 nests last weekvery near the house door (see my previous post), there are still lots of others about. After a lousy wet summer and autumn last year, and then a cold winter it's a surprise to find so manyup and buzzing.

Edit. Just midst making some gooseberry and elderflower jelly, window open and yes, you've guessed it ....

[0000]

These methods of dealing with a well respected rugby team are way OTT IMHO!

[Timmytour]

Found a nest in the kids Wendy House earlier this year. I clumsily got rid of it...fortunately not too many wasps around, it must have been in early stages. It was fascinating to see the two or three wasps concerned keep flying between the Wendy House and the bit of the patio where I'd first moved the basket which contained the nest. It was like they knew the nest should be there somehow but just couldn't comprehend where it had gone. I felt for them which made it easier to justify putting them out of their misery!

Overall I'd agree with those who say there haven't been a lot about this year. Anyone know why this is? Is it just that the "season" for them hasn't really got going yet or has the weather, current and earlier this year, played its part?

[Methuselah]

Found a nest in the kids Wendy House earlier this year. I clumsily got rid of it...fortunately not too many wasps around, it must have been in early stages. It was fascinating to see the two or three wasps concerned keep flying between the Wendy House and the bit of the patio where I'd first moved the basket which contained the nest. It was like they knew the nest should be there somehow but just couldn't comprehend where it had gone. I felt for them which made it easier to justify putting them out of their misery!

Overall I'd agree with those who say there haven't been a lot about this year. Anyone know why this is? Is it just that the "season" for them hasn't really got going yet or has the weather, current and earlier this year, played its part?

My guess would be the colder-than-average winter. For successive generations the wasps' resistance to cold has been partially bred-out. Next year may be a different kettle of fish?

[Harry]

I remember on autumnwatch year just gone, and they said wasps are actually very important! Wasps eat pests and as such keep them in check - the only time they are a real nuisance is late summer/autumn when they are brewing the next lot of queens for next year - that is when they really go for you ice lollies and fizzy drinks as they need the sugars for feeding, both themselves and the new waspies! Also, that is the time when they come close to humans and you're more likely to get stung.

In November just gone, I was getting ready for work and had my light on - was dark outside. Popped back from the bathroom and there were three big'uns flying around my bedroom light with loads more climbing up the window! Out came the Raid spray very toutes suites!

What is becoming more prevalent are hornets, which are larger than wasps though look very similar! I've read these are NOT aggressive like our normal wasps (unless of course you threaten the nest, or it) but do pack a far more painful sting. I remember seeing one on youtube and have attached the link below:

[Rainy]

We've more wasps than usual. Hardly any about last "summer" and autumn. Maybe they drowned.

There's a parallel NW thread on Wasps this year. Sorry, my fault for starting it. Didn't realise this thread was up and running.

http://www.netweather.tv/forum/index.php?showtopic=55615

[Methuselah]

We've more wasps than usual. Hardly any about last "summer" and autumn. Maybe they drowned.

There's a parallel NW thread on Wasps this year. Sorry, my fault for starting it. Didn't realise this thread was up and running.

http://www.netweather.tv/forum/index.php?showtopic=55615

I think it was my fault, mate. You started your first!

[Harry]

Loads of bumblebees this year, which is definitely a good thing, far more than previous years - not keen on them being indoors with me, lol, but like watching them from a distance.

Wasps so far this year, seen a couple at most - last year was a relatively quiet year for them, which means they could be out in force this year.

Don't forget, in case some people are getting complacent, wasps don't normally start coming out until late Summer and Autumn - I reckon we'll start seeing a big surge towards the end of August and throughout the Autumn period.

It's not so much wasps that bother me, more hornets that scare me (as per a video I posted on the alternative thread lol)

Thankfully these aren't as common in the UK as normal wasps, at the moment!

Edited July 8, 2009 by Harry

[The Penguin]

I went in to our local pet shop last weekend and asked to buy a wasp. The shopkeeper looked a bit confused and said that they didn't sell wasps. So I asked, why then did he have one in the shop window? Stupid man.

[Mark Bayley]

If you do get a wasps nest there is an easy solution to get rid of it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFLLtRSn-6I

[PersianPaladin]

If you do get a wasps nest there is an easy solution to get rid of it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFLLtRSn-6I

[J07]

Don't like them at all...paper wasps have especially nasty stings

[Cloud 10]

Yes.

Respect all of natures bewildering diversity and adaptations.

....... all except wasps.

[Ross B]

Have merged the two wasp topics together if anyone was wondering what had happened :lol:

[Osbourne One-Nil]

Wibs has just noticed she has a wasps' nest above her front door. She phoned the local council to see if they could remove it, but they wanted to charge £31, so she's going to have a go herself.

I'm going to stand a safe distance away while I watch her beaver away up a ladder.

[Methuselah]

Wibs has just noticed she has a wasps' nest above her front door. She phoned the local council to see if they could remove it, but they wanted to charge £31, so she's going to have a go herself.

I'm going to stand a safe distance away while I watch her beaver up a ladder.

Send us some pics???