[The Soap Pixie]

After we purchased our home 2 years ago we learned that our property and those surrounding us have tons of bees. Not the good kind. They live in the ground (thanks to the moles) and my hubby has gotten stung several times while mowing. Today I was out gardening and one very large wasp approached and it was huge and ugly just like this:

http://greenspell.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/wasp1.jpg

It came out of one of the holes and then was poking around in the grass. If these guys take up residence I'm afraid they will kill my honey bees. The one I saw looked it was 2 inches long :s Is it likely they will go after my bees? Does anyone know the best way to get rid of these nasty things?

 

[honeybeekeeper]

Everyone has their own way of doing things but if it was me i would find the residents of these wasps live, They are very mean when you get near their nest. I sure wouldnt drive the mower over their nest thats for sure. Watch this video on youtube and you will see how they can come out and attack!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diFK0Psxfq4

I would find the nest and then kill them at night time! What to use that would not harm your honey bees i do not know, that you would have to do some searching....Good Luck!

 

[Boglehead]

cold soapy water and a shovel - at night.
good luck!

 

[beekeepinglady~SC]

get a 2lt. pepsi bottle and cut the top off about 2 in. from the top turn it over and put it facing down in the bottle that you cut it off of. Fill it with grape jelly and they will go in there and can't get out and die. I use this on top of my hives when the wasp find them. But you need to find where they live and like some said dig them up and kill them. good luck.

 

[Freon11]

Go in there at night with a couple cans of foaming wasp and hornet killer cover with plastic flower pot so you bee's cant get in contact with any of that poison and leave covered for a week or 2 , that should be enough time for the poison to breakdown and not be a threat to you girls.

 

[The Soap Pixie]

I'll have to find where they are coming from. I dug up around where I saw the wasp and there isn't any activity. We want to dig up that entire side of the house and I'm thinking they are there somewhere :s

Thanks for the advice everyone! Once I find where they are coming from I'll definitely do my best to kill them.

 

[Scott Allen]

That sure looks like a yellow jacket. They are super aggressive and can both bite and sting multiple times, so watch yourself. We always waited until night time and pourrd a soup can full of gasoline down their hole. Worked everytime!

 

[johng]

Plenty of soapy water will kill them just fine. No need for harsh chemicals.

 

[mrspock]

In response to a dual problem of bee-fearing neighbors, as well as local wasp infestations, I'm distributing the following leaflet to all of the houses bordering me:

====================================

Dear Neighbor,

In order that my family may enjoy a wasp-free summer this year, I am committed to removing all yellowjacket wasp nests around us. If you find a nest in your yard, please give me a call, and I will remove or destroy it without the use of poison. Wasp nests are easily identified, as they are grey and made of paper. We are not concerned with Bees, which we do not consider to be any danger.

Name: Mister Spock, 444-4444

Bee and wasp identification chart:

[Picture: Wasp] Appearance: Sleek, Hairless. Behaviour: Scavenger. Attracted to both food scraps, particularly meat, but also sweet liquids. Territorial and aggressive – Typically stings anyone getting too close to nest.

[Picture: Honeybee] Appearance: Sleek, slightly hairy. Behaviour: Pollinator, feeds upon flower nectar, but sometimes attracted to sweet liquids. Typically only stings in self defence.

[Picture: Bumblebee] Appearance: Rounded, very hairy. Behaviour: Pollinator, feeds upon flower nectar, but sometimes attracted to sweet liquids. Typically only stings in self defence.

========================================


(I take pleasure in killing yellow jackets, and am using the opportunity to promote bees a bit, as well as help people understand the difference.)

 

[Chick]

If they are up to 2" long, they are some sort of hornet, but I have never known hornets to live in the ground. They build the football shaped paper nests, in trees. The picture you show, with the orange colored antennae, is a paper wasp, but they only grow to about 3/4" long. Of course, the yellow jacket is similarly colored, but it is slightly smaller and slimmer than a honey bee. And they do live in the ground. I am somewhat confused with the information you have given. Hope you get it solved!

 

[Scott Allen]

If they are up to 2" long, they are some sort of hornet, but I have never known hornets to live in the ground. They build the football shaped paper nests, in trees. The picture you show, with the orange colored antennae, is a paper wasp, but they only grow to about 3/4" long. Of course, the yellow jacket is similarly colored, but it is slightly smaller and slimmer than a honey bee. And they do live in the ground. I am somewhat confused with the information you have given. Hope you get it solved!

Chick,

I don't know abouot in your part of the country, but here in the east there are several types of hornets that are ground nesters. Sand Hornets and Yellow Jackets being just two. Yellow jackets around here seem to be slightly bigger than a typical honey bee and are very aggressive if disturbed. Skunks are a great way to get rid of them, because they dig up the nests at night. Of course, skunks are alos hard on honey bees!

Scott

Scott

 

[The Soap Pixie]

If they are up to 2" long, they are some sort of hornet, but I have never known hornets to live in the ground. They build the football shaped paper nests, in trees. The picture you show, with the orange colored antennae, is a paper wasp, but they only grow to about 3/4" long. Of course, the yellow jacket is similarly colored, but it is slightly smaller and slimmer than a honey bee. And they do live in the ground. I am somewhat confused with the information you have given. Hope you get it solved!

It was huge and was the exact same coloring as the one in the picture. Definitely a ground nester because it came out of the hole in the ground and I saw similar ones last year flying in and out of the holes in the ground (same ones that stung hubby). This one was just a lot larger.