[BeeBelle]

Hello,

I'm a newbie, and my hive recently swarmed, so I've been a little on the protective side. Today, I'm pretty sure I saw two wasps around the hive, but I was standing about 20 feet away, so I couldn't be 100% certain. Anyway, I ran right in and researched and made a wasp trap out of a two liter and some jam/water/fruit juice. I'd heard that wasps can do a lot of damage to a hive, and since my population has been reduced, I didn't want to take any chances. Well, I went out with the trap, and of course, I didn't see any wasps nor did I see any ripped up little bee bodies laying around. The bees seemed to be beehaving pretty normally - not agitated or anything. I left the wasp trap out - about 3 feet from the hive. But now I'm wondering if this is going to attract wasps to the area. Should I go ahead and remove it? We have quite a few wasps around my house right now, and I have a pail feeder on the hive under a deep, so I don't think they can get to that, but I'm wondering if the smell is attracting them. Any advice? Thanks!

 

[Slow Drone]

Yes the trap will attract more wasp. When I see wasp I chase them down and smash them the more I smash the less I see. Early spring is the best time to trap wasp to have an affect on population for the coming season. The bees will usually overwhelm wasp if they get to close or they'll chase them off. Fermenting honey seems to work the best and bees aren't attracted to the trap. Put traps at a good distance away from your apiary to be safely affective.