Wasps...How do you deal with them?

The first time I was stung was when my hand swelled up for no reason. The swelling did go down and the next day I found a dead wasp on the window catch that I’d closed. A while later I was dressing in a small tent in Cornwall and the large billowy sleeves of a long dress I was wearing had a wasp inside. As I was being stung it was a case of taking the dress off inside the tent and leaving the tent without it or to continue being stung. Can’t remember what happened. I then trod on a bee when I was wearing sandals; at first I thought I’d broken my foot because of the pain until I saw the poor dead bee. Even after that I still tried to not kill them until my last dog had to be rushed to the vets after a sting; her whole body swelled and she had to have antihistamine and an EpiPen. I’ve hardly seen any this year.

Fly swatter, Doff powder (catch and shake in jar!!!) or fly spray when they aim at me!

The house is hot, so Windows AND doors are netted, BUT we need the kitchen skylight open to get a through draft from the kitchen to sitting room (years ago, even had a sparrow shoot through one day. Was a surprise going by the speed he was going and he had to go around a corner to get through the front window!)

Even mum who complains about the draft, agrees to it because it cools everything down but the last few weeks, bloody wasps are coming in and it's annoying. As soon as it's opened, they're in.

Yet in 2022, that hot summer, it was never shut and there were no wasps.

Skydancer

GrannyGravy13

As much as I dislike them, along with the fact that I have an extreme reaction if stung, they are pollinators and therefore I try not to kill them.

We need them more than they need us

Quite right. They are part of the ecosystem. They are an important food source for Honey Buzzards who eat their grubs. However I agree they are annoying. If they land on your window put a glass over them and a bit of paper over the glass and take them outside.

At this time of year I doubt they do very much pollinating as they are dying anyway. Briefly, the lifecycle is : Queen awakens in spring builds nest, feeds larvae until there are enough workers, workers feed larvae with insects, larvae produce sugary substance that wasps love to keep them coming back with more food. At the end of the season there is no larvae to feed, as only next years queens will hibernate. Therefore, there are lots of sugar addicts flying around but no sugar producers and so they look for sugary substances to fill the void. They will pollinate but more by accident than design. Apologies for the long post and I'm a beekeeper.

I had a bad sting last night when a wasp flew down my dress. It died. Self-defence your honour.

I have a real phobia regarding wasps, ever since I was attacked by a swarm of them at school when I was a child.
Somebody had disturbed a nest and hundreds of wasps attacked any child nearby.
They were in my face, ears back of my neck and tangled in my hair.
I was dragged into the staffroom and the teachers wrapped their hands in their skirts and started squashing the wasps and extracting them from my hair.
I was given a liberal coating of "dolly blue" and sent back to class. I couldn't concentrate on my lessons and I realise now that I was in shock as I couldn't stop shaking.

My parents weren't informed and I remained in school until home time, then caught the bus home. What a sight I must have been.
Mum was furious. She gave me a tot of brandy to calm my nerves.

I'm afraid I'm one of those people who do get hysterical if a wasp gets too close.
A friend once teased me about it. I pointed out that she hated touching cotton wool balls. We don't see each other any more.

P. S.
I discovered a wasp nest by my front door last Monday.
Pest control came on Wednesday and killed the b*****s.

Vinegar for (v)wasp stings and bicarb for bee stings is something I remember from years ago.

I also cover them with a jar and paper and take them outside if I can. They are pollinators and we kill enough insects as it is. Otherwise I just get away as fast as I can. I never swat at them as it just makes them more likely to sting. And I never eat or drink outside. That's bound to attract them..

I have put peppermint oil into my electrical diffusers (you know the ones that produce a vapor) and I have burned citronella outside and the numbers seem to have reduced but it may just be because it has rained heavily during the night

There were almost none last year up here due to the very poor spring and summer. A few are starting to appear now, but they don't become a problem until later in August. I'm think with last year's poor spring and summer in the North, most of the Queens didn't survive and this could stop the wasps breeding.

JaneJudge

I have put peppermint oil into my electrical diffusers (you know the ones that produce a vapor) and I have burned citronella outside and the numbers seem to have reduced but it may just be because it has rained heavily during the night

I started using peppermint oil until I read that it is dangerous for dogs. Mind you, everything seems to be dangerous for dogs...a lot of essential oils are.

If you have a specific area, call the professionals who will find and remove the nest.
Are they wasps - we have a massive increase in hoverflies which look like baby wasps.

MayBee70

JaneJudge

I have put peppermint oil into my electrical diffusers (you know the ones that produce a vapor) and I have burned citronella outside and the numbers seem to have reduced but it may just be because it has rained heavily during the night

I started using peppermint oil until I read that it is dangerous for dogs. Mind you, everything seems to be dangerous for dogs...a lot of essential oils are.

I didn't know that, Maybee!

As you say - what isn't!

it’s this kind of thing so just a few drops in water that lets off a steam

That would be ok wouldn’t it? Now I am more worried about my dogs than the wasps

“Don’t: Diffuse Peppermint Oil

Your dog’s sense of smell is pawesomly strong, being between 1000-10,000 times more mighty than your own. With this, they are sensitive to stronger smells such as essential oils so it’s best to avoid using diffused peppermint oil in the vicinity of your pooch. Too much peppermint oil can cause nausea, vomiting, or diarrhoea. If any of this occurs, seek immediate attention from your vet.”
I was spraying it everywhere to deter wood lice and spiders. Mind you, having had a furniture beetle infestation I’ve decided that spiders are my friends because they seem to catch all the baddie bugs. When I had a flour mite infestation they were being caught by the larder spiders. My daughter has a skylight in her kitchen and when I’m dog sitting I worry about her dog being stung but the wasps tend to fly upwards and get caught by the spiders that have webs there ( it’s too high up to keep on top of the cobwebs). I do try to put some jam on a saucer so I can take them outside but it doesn’t tend to work.

I was spraying the conservatory with diluted essential oils, ie citrus ones and lavender, to try to discourage spiders (nothing works!!), but I'll remember that if the dog is visiting.

Apparently tomatoes are bad, I didn't know, but our smallest dog loved spaghetti bolognese; he wasn't ill afterwards.

I know. I used to give my dog some tomato and cucumber when I had a salad.

My dog has an occasional cherry tomato, with the vet’s approval. He just said to avoid green tomatoes and tomato products, because of the other ingredients like salt, onion, garlic etc.

Wasps are something we have to live with; wasp season is at its worst in August and September and they die out rapidly in October. Last 3 years, they haven't been much of a problem here, last year the rotten summer meant there were hardly any and a harsher winter might have made it harder for the Queens to survive
I did read, though, that they can bounce back from a poor year, so maybe the Queens that survived could have had more time to breed in the dry spring and there could be more wasps. I did notice at Carlisle races last week, there were a few wasps buzzing around the bins.

Thank you Maybee x

I’m sure I’m just being over cautious. Pre internet I didn’t know about any of the things that are dangerous to dogs, including chocolate and grapes which were everywhere when the kids were little.

if there are wasps about I take a piece of bread and put a good smear of jam on it. Move this to a good distance from your chairs and people sitting about. That will encourage them to go for that and leaving you alone If eating in the garden, cover all food with cling film and only uncover to eat items. When you are walking or being outside you might need to look for a building such as barn etc to eat your food in and then come out to drink your coffee,

There was a nest on the back window, called a pest control firm, they injected gel, killed them off instantly. Some of the dead ones fall in the window sill and if I see them, brush them off