How to kill Yellow Jackets?

[Richard]

Here's my situation, just noticed it yesterday.

(Preface: Although I'm getting sting allergy shots, it turns out I'm highly allergic to various stinging "sob's". Two years ago, I landed in the emergency room after a wasp sting and have since found out that I'm MUCH more reactive to yellow jackets and hornets so thankfully, the wasp sting was more of a heads up warning as it could have been worse.)

Ok...back to situation...

Gravel driveway and at the edge of it, right where the nose of each car comes to rest is a rock wall. I've attached an old picture that happens to show just part of it.

Above and in this wall the wife has various flowers & such...therefore, we also installed an irrigation system to it. So, every day the water automatically waters her flowers. What ends up happening is we'll get little puddles here & there.

Yesterday, I noticed a dang FLOCK of yellow jackets (or were they hornets... they were the smaller buggers)

Anyways, there was probably a hundred of them concentrating around a certain spot that I'm fairly sure was simply a water hole where a puddle had accumulated from the sprinkling system.

Last night, in an effort to dry everything out, I turned the automatic system off. This morning when I got to car to leave, I noticed there was 20 or so buzzing about.

I'll add that last night when I took the dogs out at 11:00, I went to look at this area and it was totally void of any flying insects and I didn't notice any hole that might indicate hive activity (although that could be hard to find with all the nooks & crannys of the rocks). They also seemed to be sharing it with some regular bees as I think I saw just a couple honey bees mixed in with them. I'll admit I did not get TOO close to verify so that might be in error.

So, if I have a hive, I can deal with that as I'd HAPPILY introduce them to some $4.00 gasoline. Heck, I'd even be happy to purchase some premium for them so they can go out with style. I'm just that kind of a nice guy

If I do NOT have a hive there and this is in fact, what it appears to be, a watering hole, then when I've got a mass of them congregating there sharing their mid afternoon tea with each other, how might I oblitherate them?

I need to keep SOME kind of water going for the flowers or they'll wither and die.

Aside from all the above...this flock of stinging sob's is right smack dab where the nose of a car will be when you park in the driveway so I really do NOT want someone to drive in, put the nose of their car next to this spot & get them all excited & airborn and suffer any negative consequenses because of that.

I really need to figure out how to either kill these sob's, or entice them to move on down the road. Preferably without getting stung myself.

Thoughts??

 

[California]

My ranch house has an attic bedroom like your photo. Its an occasionally-used guest bedroom, reached by outdoor stairs. Look what I found up there under the little second story porch.

This wasp nest was larger than a soccer ball, about a cubic foot.

Since it was 15 ft above the ground I didn't see any way to attack it from someplace where I had a retreat path.

I hired an exterminator. $175. That's cheaper than the medical bills if I attempted and didn't get it right.

 

[sunspot]

If you are having a dry spell, they may just be coming in for the water. You gave a clue when you said there are honey bee's around the water puddle.

 

[Richard]

I'd agree with your comments and circumstances.

My situation might be a bit different in that I don't yet (knowingly) have a hive... just a location on the ground that is wet and seems to be a place where they are collecting to draw on some water.

I can't pour gas down a hole that doesn't (as of current knowledge) exist. A giant fly swatter that was 20' in width would really be more of what I'd need.

The wife today, tried to spray some killer on them from a window. She said it didn't work as it needs to hit them directly and evidently, by the time the stream went from the window to the ground, it missed them.

 

[Richard]

If you are having a dry spell, they may just be coming in for the water. You gave a clue when you said there are honey bee's around the water puddle.

Exactly. I DO think it's just a watering hole which is why I turned the irrigation system off last night. I'm hoping all this dries up 100% and they push on.

I really can't afford (myself nor for others) to have a couple hundred stinging sob's flying around where we park our cars, allowing the cars to get them motivated & airborn just as the person is getting out of the car.

Would a store bought trap work? Do those traps work more on queens only?

Might I get lucky and have a trap with a hundred of them little buggers in them that I could then slowly drown in the lake?

 

[4720 OWNER]

Have the same issue about stings, just not to that extent yet.

You have a nest somewhere close. They do not like to travel that far. Could be in a tree or in the ground, it will need to be addressed at some point. Queens stay in the nest and make little stingers. Lehmans has some nice glass hornet traps that would compliment the garden.

Tree nests are fun, wonderful shotgun targets and that gets rid of the queen as well, just have a safe refuge to go to.

The safety crew will have a field day with this one, but did you know that hornet spray is flammable? Think 40' flame thrower. For the ground nest, or your favorite liquid flammable.

 

[JRobyn]

check similar thread:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/123880-what-attracts-hornets-bottle-traps.html

 

[RonMar]

Liquid dish Soap and water... Works great, at least for hornets it does, although I don't exactly know why. I mix up about 60/40 water to dishsoap in a spray bottle and use on the occasional hives that start to be built under the eves. The hornets/wasps that come into contact with the stuff, freefall to the ground and there they die. I was watching a show on killer bees and an exterminator that handles them down south. They use a pressure washer with soap injection. The high pressure stream shreds the hive and the soap kills the occupants. I havn't tried the pressure washer yet, but I have used a shotgun to shred outside hives so the spray can penatrate and kill the bees inside.

The bees are building a hive somewhere and are rolling mudballs from the puddle to carry back to their hive. Bees also don't fly at night, so you will have to watch them in the daylight to see if they are nesting there. Once you find the hole, if they are underground, wait till dark then pour a soap solution down the hole and see what happens. OR you can give them a puddle away from areas you frequent to encourage them to get their building material elsewhere.

 

[sunspot]

Organ pipe mud dauber - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The bees are building a hive somewhere and are rolling mudballs from the puddle to carry back to their hive.

The ones in the South are Mud Daubers

 

[Skyco]

Watch the area around dusk to see if the yellowjackets are coming back and going into a hive entrance you haven't spotted. They all go back into the hive at night and that is the time to get them if you find the hive...and instead of gasoline I'd use an insecticide. Most info recommends poofing a dust type into the entrance so they track it around and get all of them.
As I've mentioned in other threads I've become highly interested in the study of yellowjackets since I got nailed by a bunch of them when I disturbed an underground nest. I never did find the nest entrance, it can be really small. Most of the yellowjacket nests are underground but not all. I've had some luck with commercial traps but they can fool you. You get quite a few and think you've made progress but then study reveals a hive can have thousands.
Good luck and be careful.