Does anyone know of something I can put out to trap wasps or feed to them to kill them. Every year around this time we have a wasp invasion. We can't go out on our upper deck during the day because there are so many of them flying around. Our back door is just under that same deck as we have a walk out basement. You have to watch when you walk outside because they sometimes fight with each other and fall on you. They are the longer body wasps with the hanging down legs. I would appreciate any suggestions you would have. I HATE THEM!
I'm not sure I have a solution, but for what it's worth, My FIL bought some disposable wasp traps. Don't waste your money on them. They were supposed to have a lure in them and he put them near the grapes. They didn't catch any wasps :'( You could try burning some citronella candles near the door to "smoke" them away from the deck. I notice the insects don't seen to hang around as much when they are lit. It might work for the wasps also. I found that wasps tend to winter over underneath the siding. they don't winter over in a nest. They may be scouting out places for the winter. When we put our addition on 10 years ago, we started it in Feb. We found many wasps underneath the siding when we tore it off.
I usually do not recommend chemical solutions to problems, but I haven't found anything else that works. If you have an Ace Hardware store near you, they have Ace Wasp and Hornet spray. It works. If you go out at sundown when the wasps are least active and spray their nests and any surfaces like door frames, siding, etc. you will get rid of them. There are two types of the insecticide--jet spray and wide spray. Get the wide spray. I have to spray the workshop twice a year to discourage wasps from taking over the porch. I hope this helps. Wasps can ruin a nice evening!
Carolyn I to have trided the wasp traps with the lure. What I have found that works at catching some of them is to put soda inside the trap. But with as many as we have I will have to try the pyrethrum smoking snakes. I'm sure that they are looking for a place to winter over as it happens every year around this time. :-x Marlingardener I to hate to use sprays but in this case I will have to get a couple cans and spray the whole east side of our home. I had found a spray online that is pyrethrum based and is for spraying your house outside to keep the wasps away as it is deadly for them to even breath the fumes and they avoid the stuff like the plague. But I'm not going to pay 24.00 for one can of spray. Thanks for the suggestions from both of you.
I try to avoid the sprays too especially because you can kill other insects that are in the area....and I can't tolerate chemicals, I have to go inside when all of the neighbors have their lawns sprayed. My nose is extra sensitive and I don't feel well...I call it a curse to be so sensitive to sprays and strong smells. I used the traps that they can fly into and not get out and I filled them with a soda when I camped and wanted to eat outside at the picnic table and they worked back then. I am sure you can find something on the web that shows you how to make some type of trap if you google it. Good Luck.
It would seem that the solutions are for after the wasps have established themselves. Are there nests visible? Perhaps they have nests that winter over, in which case the nests need to be removed when cold weather sets in. If they nest in soffits then some boards may need to be removed to access the nest but only after the cold has eliminated activity. Jerry
Sherry I hate it when people spray their lawns. They have no idea of all the poisons that are in those weed killers. Then their kids and pets play on them. I have a trap that I caught a few wasps in. But they are a pain to have to empty. I bought some liquid ant poison for sweet eating ants called Terro. I have been mixing it with a little soda and putting it out for them to eat. So far they love it. Jerry we did have a pretty big wasp nest about 30ft from our house. We didn't notice it until it was to late. Plus it was to high to reach with a wasp spray. The last few storms have torn it apart pretty good. But I'm sure that those wasp's that were left are looking for a place to winter over. I did get some wasp jet spray and have been spraying the eves on the back of the house every morning before they become active. It sure has helped. I really hate those things. I'd rather have bumble bee's and honey bee's around as they are less aggressive. Now that the weather has gotten colder they aren't as active. :-D
Tooty, I have heard of a "natural repellent" using a brown paper bag. Fill it with a filler to hold it's shape and tie a string around the top making it into a "round " shape. Wasps are territorial so hang it where you don't want the wasps to be and maybe it would help "repel" any that would be "lured" to your deck, since there is no competition. Don't let it swing, tie it up snug to the nook where you want it. Or perhaps you could even harvest an old unused one, hornet or wasp, for the same purpose. I am not sure if you meant pyrethrum snakes, but I would never use anything such as this that is a burning/smoking insecticide. I have never heard of this product, but I would not want to be inhaling this.
Carolyn I did hang a fake wasp nest under our raised deck thats over our back door earlier in the summer. Last year we had a wasp's build a nest under the steps going up on the lower deck. Every time you would walk up the steps the wasp would come flying out. We were able to spray that one and get rid of them. So this year I ordered the fake wasp's nest's and hung one in the above location. No wasp build a nest within 30 ft. of it. So I know they work. But I'll have to see if it would work for those wasp's that are looking for a place to hibernate. We now have had some cooler weather and they are no where to be seen. :-D Yes it was the pyrethrum snakes. I burned them in my barn and it helped keep a lot of the wasps out of their. Yea I wouldn't want to breath even that more natural stuff.
