Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Bee/Wasp problem
- This topic is empty.
-
AuthorPosts
-
June 18, 2015 at 9:03 pm #817728
Marie MMemberI see what look like small wasps going in and out of the space between my deck and under the side of the house. I believe they are making a home there. I don’t like to use chemicals and wonder if there’s something else I can do besides killing them with sprays.
It seems like there have been beekeepers on this forum in the past who had good advice for this situation. I just don’t remember what it was.
Can anyone help?
Thanks.
June 18, 2015 at 10:52 pm #825044
melissaParticipantI’m not expert, Marie, but if they are bees they’d likely be swarming and wouldn’t be there for long. Sounds as if you have yellow jackets, though. They are pretty easy to tell apart. Yellow jackets have a two piece body, very clearly divided; whereas bees are one piece. If they are yellow jackets, I’d nuke ’em, as that’s how I feel about them, but if they are bees, there are lots of beekeepers here in Seattle who can direct you to folks who will help remove them. Shipwreck honey and Seola Beach Honey come to mind.
June 18, 2015 at 10:59 pm #825045
WSBKeymasterHelpful pictures on the “think you have a swarm? read this first” link on this page, which, if it IS a swarm, tells you who to call:
June 18, 2015 at 11:10 pm #825046
anonymeParticipantDon’t mistake paper wasps for yellow jackets; they look almost identical, but there are differences in habits and aggressiveness. It’s much more likely to be paper wasps going under a deck, and they are relatively harmless.
June 18, 2015 at 11:43 pm #825047
dhgParticipantWood bees are sweet, nonaggressive little creatures who will do no harm. Please take the time to find out what kind of creature it is before resorting to poisons.
June 19, 2015 at 12:50 am #825048
cjboffoliParticipantMy friends had a problem with wasps last year at their house over by the Arboretum. In addition to pheromone traps, their exterminator set up a vacuum system. As the wasps would egress from their nest (by way of a gap in the house siding) they’d get vacuumed up into what was essentially a quieter version of a shop vac that was running for a couple of days. Completely solved the problem without the use of poisons.
June 19, 2015 at 3:21 pm #825049
Marie MMemberThanks, everyone, for the information. I looked at the Puget Sound Bee site and now know that this isn’t a swarm. From doing searches on the possibilities mentioned here, it seems that these are paper wasps. Since they are beneficial insects, I’ll leave them alone. We don’t use that deck very much, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
Thanks for all the suggestions!
June 19, 2015 at 4:07 pm #825050
anonymeParticipantMarie, thank you for taking such a reasoned approach. I thought I had hornets/yellow jackets on my soffits, but John from Adept Pest came out and told me they were paper wasps. He did not recommend spraying or treatment of any kind, aside from knocking down their little paper umbrellas occasionally. Spring is their busiest season.
June 19, 2015 at 8:38 pm #825051
Marie MMemberAnonyme, thank you for the information!
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.