Any advice on getting the yellowjackets out of my backyard?

[SandEagle]

doh, beaten to it by Jeff7


http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=2243176

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

No need to buy anything if you have a fertilizer spreader attachment for your graden hose. Fill it up with dish soap, and then spray it onto the nest - as someone said, it's best to wait until dusk when they start to settle in for the night. Your results may vary, but mine went like this:

Before:

After:

Congrats. You killed a bee swarm not a nest. Swarms move on after they've rested. It's important to know the difference between pests and helpful insects.

 

[Rubycon]

Those look like umbrella wasps. Not particularly exciting but they will sting if disturbed. Just wait until night time and hose the nest down with a good brand spray that shoots a heavy stream.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Those look like umbrella wasps. Not particularly exciting but they will sting if disturbed. Just wait until night time and hose the nest down with a good brand spray that shoots a heavy stream.

Umbrella wasps or, paper wasps don't swarm very often and when they do they're orderly about it. They tend to line up side by side or head to tail. If you look at the picture, you'll see a random grouping. Can't say for sure as the picture is kinda small but, they sure look like bees to me.

 

[Sluggo]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper_wasp

Umbrella wasp seems correct. I wish they weren't near the patio or I would just leave them be, since they seem to feast on other bothersome insects.

Maybe I could interest them in a relocation package to another part of our yard.

 

[Sluggo]

Umbrella wasps or, paper wasps don't swarm very often and when they do they're orderly about it. They tend to line up side by side or head to tail. If you look at the picture, you'll see a random grouping. Can't say for sure as the picture is kinda small but, they sure look like bees to me.

I'm sure they aren't bees, they are from the wasp family. Wikipedia list the nest shape as umbrella shaped, and that is definitely the shape of the nests I knocked down.

There were actually three nests, and they are currently rebuilding two of the three.

 

[Schadenfroh]

Congrats. You killed a bee swarm not a nest. Swarms move on after they've rested. It's important to know the difference between pests and helpful insects.

Helpful until his daughter is playing in the backyard and her ball accidentally disturbs them and she has to get taken to the ER.

I would nuke that from orbit if it was near places where I spend time outdoors, as surely as I would slay something like this:

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

I'm sure they aren't bees, they are from the wasp family. Wikipedia list the nest shape as umbrella shaped, and that is definitely the shape of the nests I knocked down.

There were actually three nests, and they are currently rebuilding two of the three.

Gotcha.

 

[Rubycon]

Umbrella wasps or, paper wasps don't swarm very often and when they do they're orderly about it. They tend to line up side by side or head to tail. If you look at the picture, you'll see a random grouping. Can't say for sure as the picture is kinda small but, they sure look like bees to me.

Oh I was referring to the pics taken by the OP not the other post with the dead bees on the ground.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Helpful until his daughter is playing in the backyard and her ball accidentally disturbs them and she has to get taken to the ER.

I would nuke that from orbit if it was near places where I spend time outdoors, as surely as I would slay something like this:

If it were a bee swarm, a ball flying into it wouldn't cause anything to happen except possibly causing the swarm to move on. Bees are extremely docile when swarming.

Cute spider.

 

[lxskllr]

Seriously, I'd just leave them alone. As long as they aren't nesting in a doorway where you'll constantly disturb them, they should be fairly trouble free. Humans will lose in any contest against nature, so it's better to just try living with them imo.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Seriously, I'd just leave them alone. As long as they aren't nesting in a doorway where you'll constantly disturb them, they should be fairly trouble free. Humans will lose in any contest against nature, so it's better to just try living with them imo.

Wasps can be a pain int he butt, even if they don't sting you there. As has already been mentioned, soapy water usually does the trick and isn't toxic like some of the aerosol bug killers.

 

[zerocool84]

Don't know why this hasn't been posted yet but


nuke from orbit

 

[dougp]

Congrats. You killed a bee swarm not a nest. Swarms move on after they've rested. It's important to know the difference between pests and helpful insects.

Hi, my dog was stung a few times and they went after my wife. I need to be able to use my yard, it's not a fucking camp ground for bees.

 

[TwinsenTacquito]

soak the nest in diesel, or get the raid stuff...

You know you want to! 5 gallon bucket filled with low octane gas or diesel fuel. Add chunks of styrofoam, stir with shovel and cover. Wait 12 hours, add more styrofoam. Wait another few hours. You can add more foam if you want to thicken it more, but you should have a nice spreadable paste at this point that won't immediately soak into the ground.

 

[eldorado99]

I spray the hell out of them with brakleen. Seems to knock them out cold, or rather kill them instantly, even mid-flight.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Hi, my dog was stung a few times and they went after my wife. I need to be able to use my yard, it's not a fucking camp ground for bees.

You're right, I just don't like the 'kill anything that moves' reaction to insects. A lot of basement dwellers in ATOT forget that neither they or anyone else could live without insects.

 

[TwinsenTacquito]

When they get near your house, kill anything that moves.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

sell your house and move

 

[Quasmo]

Get a bulldog.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

 

[danzigrules]

let's not even google what I said, it works great, but you all keep doing what you are doing.

 

[marvdmartian]

Man, I hate those paper nest building wasps, no matter what you call them! Damn nests are like the clown car at the circus.......it might look small, but if you disturb it, all of a sudden they're piling out of there, and you're wondering where the F*CK they all were hiding??

Wasp spray is the safest method, imho. Nothing beats 20-25 feet of safety distance, especially if they come swarming out. Gives you more reaction time to turn and run, screaming like a little girl!!

 

[DrPizza]

If you see one of those swarms - they're usually honeybees. Leave them alone & they'll move on. They're very docile when they're in a swarm like that. You can get your face within inches & they'll leave you alone. If you check on your local craigslist under farm and garden, there are usually people begging for swarms like that. It's easy to capture the swarm and put them to work for you, producing lots of honey. I was just out working with my honeybees earlier today. They disappeared for a couple weeks, just like they did last year. Tons of them, then suddenly one day, none. Now, there were a few hundred. Within a couple weeks, there will probably be thousands of them.

 

[DrPizza]

Man, I hate those paper nest building wasps, no matter what you call them! Damn nests are like the clown car at the circus.......it might look small, but if you disturb it, all of a sudden they're piling out of there, and you're wondering where the F*CK they all were hiding??

Wasp spray is the safest method, imho. Nothing beats 20-25 feet of safety distance, especially if they come swarming out. Gives you more reaction time to turn and run, screaming like a little girl!!

Been there, done that. 20-25 foot head start is insufficient if they decide to come after you. First time I used that method, I went running down the street screaming like a little girl. Now, I get out the starter fluid (ethyl ether). 20 foot flame thrower instead. Only problem is, I've set a couple trees on fire & you definitely don't want to use it on a house.