Wasp control – home remedies and wasp poison against nests

Prevent

So you want to get rid of the wasps. Individual wasps foraging for food keep flying if they cannot find anything nutritious. This means that you have to seal all food and not leave anything lying around. Drinks outdoors must always be closed with a lid. It is safe to drink from a straw, no wasps will fit through it. Garbage and rubbish must also not be accessible, just like the compost. A closed composter is better. Furthermore, you shouldn’t wear clothes that are too brightly colored in the garden, or use perfume-containing creams and fragrances, all of this attracts wasps. If these things are observed, the wasps will usually fly on quickly.

If there is a wasp’s nest in the immediate vicinity, it looks different. The insects look for their places according to their demands. They like to nest in roller shutter boxes, under eaves. In sheds and garages and in similar sheltered places. When a nest has emerged in the garden, the insects are permanent guests and the number keeps growing. The nest grows and gets bigger, at the same time the number of yellow and black striped wings increases. What can you do now?

I am of the opinion that you don’t have to kill all the animals you don’t like, not even insects. However, sometimes there is no other way. Then again, I am in favor of the most humane method. The animals should be spared unnecessary suffering. But everyone has to deal with that for themselves. Most of the people I know show no mercy. But nobody has to orientate themselves towards the general public.

Home remedies for visitor wasps

It makes a difference whether you want to do something against individual wasps, which are a nuisance while drinking coffee, or against a colony of wasps. Individual wasps can be scared away quite well. One can target their sensitive olfactory system. This works better in the house, of course, because the smell is not blown away by the wind. This is often the case outside. Nevertheless you should try it.

• Lard lemons with cloves. Both are great fragrances in their own right, together they work even better, and also against mosquitoes. The lemons are halved. Four whole cloves are stuck into the open side as legs and half the fruit is placed on it. Then the bowl is peppered with cloves.
• Lavender also helps, whether as a plant or as an essential oil. A scented lamp or scented candle are well suited. Otherwise you can put lavender pots on the table as a decoration or scatter dried flowers everywhere.
• In the rooms, bundles of lavender flower stems that are attached to the lamp or curtain rod also help.
• Wasp traps are effective, but not very humane. To do this, a vessel with a narrow neck is filled with a little beer and sugar. A few drops of detergent are also important. They ensure that the surface tension of the liquid is low. The insects cannot hold on to it, as is usually the case. You drown very quickly. However, the fluid must be changed regularly, otherwise it will soon be obsolete. By the way, beer and not juice are taken so that bees are not attracted. There are already too few of them.
• It is better to have cloths soaked in ammonia and to hang them up where they can be useful. However, the pungent smell is anything but pleasant even for human noses.
• Lighting up coffee powder is another option; this is called smoking coffee. To do this, the powder is sprinkled on a fire-proof base and set on fire. The smoldering powder creates smoke that bothers the wasps. Sensitive noses don’t like that either. This is rather unsuitable for the coffee table. Placing a few bowls around the barbecue area during the barbecue evening is much more suitable.
• Lay out garlic in the area and hang it up. I think this is a good remedy for interiors. In the open air it probably brought tons of garlic.
• Lighting smoking sticks, of course, only works when there is no wind or indoors
• Pick up fallen garden fruit, it attracts wasps.

Home remedies against nest users

Almost all of the above remedies also help against wasps from a nearby nest. But there are also more options.

• Wasp nest dummies are also helpful. Well placed, they indicate after insects looking for a nesting site that this area is already inhabited. In order to avoid arguments, they look for another place.
• Relocation is the best remedy against a wasp colony.

Wasp poison against wasp nests

Using poison should only be considered as a very last resort. Wasp sprays and wasp foam are available in stores. Both act against the insects, more or less quickly depending on the insecticide. However, the poisons are often not entirely safe for humans, pets, other insects and the entire environment. Many of the poisons are absolutely dangerous to bees. Just like wasps, bees also die. Everyone should realize that poisons are always dangerous. Mostly it is neurotoxins. I don’t like to have anything to do with it.

• One can of wasp spray is enough for 8 to 10 tennis ball-sized nests
• If you have a large nest that needs to be disposed of, you will need an adequate supply.
• Sprays containing wasp venom are available at hardware stores or by mail order.
• The best time to control it is in the early morning and late evening, when the insects are all in the nest. In cooler temperatures, the insects are not as mobile as in warm ones.
• The spray bottles generally have a long nozzle so that you don’t have to get very close to the nests.
• To be on the safe side, protective clothing offers good protection.
• Hold the nozzle directly in the entrance opening of the wasp’s nest and spray properly.
• The wasps will react quickly and try to get out of the nest. This can be recognized by a humming and humming inside.
• Spray these insects in a targeted manner and mist the entire nest around the outside.
• Spray over a large area.
• Do not spray against the wind !!!
• The next day, the nest must be carefully checked. If something moves, a second treatment must follow.

Wasp foam works in a similar way. The foam is sprayed inside the nest and sprayed on the outside. The whole nest must be full of foam inside and out. This contains an insecticide that kills the wasps. The poison works quickly, at least on directly affected insects. The foam persists for some time and then collapses. The nest remains hanging for a day or two so that returning wasps are also eliminated. The poison continues to have an effect.

• Protective clothing is also recommended for foam applications.
• You work again in the cooler hours when the wasps are quite lazy.
• Spray directly into the nest.
• Otherwise work as with the spray.

The poisons

None of the poisons are without them, not even the natural ones. After all, nature still produces the most dangerous toxins.

• Pyrethrins – Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium extract – obtained from chrysanthemums, largely natural agent, contact insecticide, has a neurotoxic effect, can be broken down by insects and is therefore mixed with PBO (piperonyl butoxide), used in cold nebulizers, only toxic to humans when consumed and when inhaled gentle on beneficial organisms
• d-Phenothrin – synthetic remedy based on the natural remedy pyrethrum, quickly effective, even at low doses, contact poison, has an effect on the nervous system, rarely acute poisoning in humans, these synthetic remedies are cheaper and can be produced in larger quantities, unfortunately not gentle on beneficial organisms
• Tetramethrin – chemical compound from the group of pyrethroids, manufactured synthetically, chemically very stable, mixture of four stereoisomers, which are also marketed individually, quickly effective, is often combined with other insecticides, broad spectrum of activity, attacks nerve cells, toxic in humans Ingestion, organ damage
• PBO – piperonyl butoxide – enhances the effect of other substances, not even an insecticide, inhibits detoxification in the insect’s body, which is quite harmless to humans
• Prallethrin – insecticide from the group of pyrethroids, also used in veterinary medicine, contact poison, acts on the nerve membranes, fast and very effective, poisonous to bees
• Cyphenothrin – a synthetic pyrethroid, see above, toxic to bees
• Permethrin – also a pyrethroid, very toxic to bees
• Deltamethrin – synthetic pyrethroid, probably also poisonous to bees
• p-menthane-3,8-diol – plant-based active ingredient, used as a repellent = deterrent, can provide protection for several hours, can be obtained from distillation residues of essential lemon eucalyptus, but is now mostly synthesized chemically.

Conclusion
Wasps can be a nuisance. Usually they are pretty easy to scare away. However, if you have a nest in your immediate vicinity, you have to see whether you can live with it. Wasps are actually not aggressive as long as you leave them alone. If you can, you shouldn’t press the wasps. In autumn only the queen remains, which is easy to move. If you can’t wait that long, you should get help or take action yourself. The best solution for the wasps is to move the entire nest. It’s actually not difficult and safe with protective clothing. Poison is a bad solution, but of course it is possible. However, one should choose something that works quickly so as not to prolong the suffering of the insects. I would only use poison as a last resort but for many garden owners it just has to be quick. Insects just have no right to exist. I think that’s a shame.