Yellow Jackets

[Nyboy]

People use frontline on birds to control mites

 

[Zeedman]

People use frontline on birds to control mites

Good to know, @Nyboy , thank you. I've never used it, so am unfamiliar with its toxicity to other living things.

 

[Collector]

@Zeedman we put the bait in a small bird cage that only the bees can get in. We still have yellow jackets around just in a massively reduced amount. We pulled the bait when I saw a bald faced hornet on it, also never saw a wasp on it either.

 

[baymule]

@Collector I am glad that it worked for you. So far, the yellow jackets here just go get a drink of water from the animals water. If they get to be a nuisance, I know what to do. Last year, at a neighbors, they were swarming on dropped persimmons in their front yard. They couldn't even go outside in the front. I didn't know about this then, but I have since learned how to get rid of them.

 

[flowerbug]

That sounds like an interesting method... and you don't need to find the nest(s) to kill them. Pretty similar to the way I kill carpenter ants, when they enter the home or garden.

I have two reservations about using poisoned food, though. My main concern would be for the insect-eating birds - those that eat suet - which might also be attracted to the food. I don't know how toxic Front Line would be for them. For that reason, were I to use this method, I would cover the food with hardware cloth or something similar, with holes just large enough to allow the wasps. I wonder, though... would other animals (such as raccoons and opossums) also be attracted to the scent?

My other concern is that if effective, it would wipe out all meat-eating wasps within feeding range - and not just on my property. For those with a deathly allergy to stings, that is obviously not a bad thing. But keep in mind: those same wasps are effective insect predators. They are a valuable part of my OPM strategy; so I allow many wasp nests on my property, and only target wasps if their location makes them a threat. Wiping out all meat-eating wasps could have undesirable side effects, since they are constantly on patrol for caterpillars, aphids, and other pests... not only in my gardens, but in all the surrounding areas. This could potentially have negative effects on the entire local ecosystem, so I would use such measures only as a last resort.

yes, i wouldn't use it and unlike @thistlebloom ers high eaves we don't have a problem knocking down the nests off the house.

my concern is that there are way too many native bee species that are not doing that great and i don't wish to harm a single one of them.

i don't swat at bees flying by, i don't get stung. Mom swats at them, she does...

if i keep them off the house that cuts down the aggressive bees defending their hives. we get a lot of mud daubers and various other bees making nests in various places in the garage that i try to leave alone...

 

[seedcorn]

Bottom 2are what we call mud dabbers. They don’t sting-or at least never heard of anyone getting stung.

 

[Carol Dee]

So far so good. Only one bee sting this summer. We see wasps and they have tried to make a nest in the hose reel, which I get rid of right away. (They are persistent, but so am I!) As it is right next to back door and have been known to then get in the house! I am leery of many poisons for them as I do not want to harm the Honey bees.

 

[Nyboy]

Carol are your hives in backyard or garden down the road ?

 

[Carol Dee]

@Nyboy We have most of the hives at our 2 acre lot 2 miles from home. Then one at a Friends you "pick flower farm" Miss Effie's (she will let us put 2 there next year) Three at Cinnamon Ridge Dairy and Farms (They also will take more) And one at The Shack at Lost Grove Lake. All three of those locations sell our Honey Bob plans to up the number of hives after retirement. (Hope it keeps him busy WITHOUT needing more help from me!) LOL

 

[Nyboy]

I am liking the you pick flower farm more and more