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Posted on Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009 at 11:57 pm
How do I remove ground wasps from my overgrown garden?
I have an overgrown flower garden in my backyard. I want to remove everything and grow grass in its place. I tried to remove everything, but have since found out (4 stings later) that one area (8 foot by 4 foot) is infested with ground wasps.
I did some research on ground wasp removal and all articles talk about waiting until dark and then removing them. The problem is I have no idea where they are in this garden which will make locating the nest a problem. Any suggestions for finding the nest without incurring more stings?
Thanks!
Careful observation, from a discreet distance, might give away the location of the nest. It might be a subterranean nest, in which case you will see only the wasps disappearing into a small hole in the ground. Once you locate the nest, or the hole, you can easily get rid of them by approaching after dark and giving a 5 – 10 second spray with an aerosol wasp killer. The primary reason for doing it after dark is that the wasps will all be in the nest and much less active. You can spray in the daytime, but you will not get them all, and you won’t be able to approach the area again that day.
If you can’t determine the location of the nest any other way, you might be able to cut some of the vegetation with a string trimmer – after dark, of course, and then watch again the next day. If you choose to try that, were loose clothing, long sleeves, gloves and a veil, just to be on the safe side. Use a light so that you can see the nest, if it happens to be above ground. If the nest is below ground, the movement and noise might stir up the wasps enough that they’ll come out, even in the dark. That’s why the protective clothing.
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