How to Get Rid of Wasps

How to Identify a Wasp

Before you rush out to buy as many wasp sprays and traps as you can find, you need to know what type of wasp you are dealing with, and indeed if it is a wasp at all.

Wasps vs. Bees

If you see a hairy, round bodied orange insect buzzing around your flowers in the garden, it is likely you are looking at a bee and not a wasp.

Honeybees are passive stinging insects, who tend to keep themselves to themselves, play a vital role in the food chain, and are critical to the environment.

You should never attempt to remove a beehive from your property and should contact a professional beekeeping service if concerned.

Wasps on the other hand tend to be more slender, hairless, and have a tapered waist connecting their thorax to their abdomen.

Unlike bees, wasps can sting people multiple times without dying and will do so if they feel threatened.

Wasp Characteristics

Besides their multiple body parts, wasps have several identifying features. Adult wasps can grow to up to 25mm in size, with wings, a pair of antennae, and six legs.

Female wasps have a stinger at the very end of their bottom body section which is also used as a reproductive organ. Only female wasps can sting.

Wasp Species

There are several common wasp species in the UK that may be causing you concern.

Common Yellow Jacket

Yellow Jackets, or Vespula vulgaris, is the most common wasp to see in the UK and is by far the most likely to disturb humans.

As the name suggests yellow jackets have a distinctive yellow and black colouring on the abdomen in a dotted or ringed pattern. They are around 12-17mm long when fully grown with queen wasps reaching as big as 20mm.

Yellow jackets are the wasps you will likely be swatting away from your picnic and will build their nests inside walls, sheds, hollow trees, and underground.

German Wasps

German wasps (Vespula germanic), or the European wasp, are very similar in size and appearance to common yellow jackets but are distinguishable by three black dots on their face.

German wasp nests are usually found in attics, and in the ground, and unlike a common yellow jacket wasp nest, can sometimes survive through the winter and grow the next year.

These wasps are very destructive and invasive, often damaging native wildlife when entering new territory.

Paper Wasps

Paper Wasps are usually found in Southern Europe and are uncommon in the UK.

There have been a few sightings, however, thought to have been brought over on a lorry or plant from mainland Europe.

Paper wasps appear similar to other wasps such as the yellow jacket but tend to be slimmer with longer legs.

A paper wasp nest is built from wood fibre collected from nearby plants and will resemble an upside down umbrella.

Why are Wasps on my Property?

If wasps like to be left alone, and wasp stings are the result of a feeling of being under threat, why do wasps choose to make their nests near humans?

As migrating insects, there are several things that will attract wasps to set up a nest on your property.

These include:

Food

After a winter of hibernation, the queen and her wasp colony will be on the lookout for any food they can find.

Wasps may search your garden for insects to consume but will also be quick to accept a free meal.

Barbecue leftovers, soda cans, fruit juice, and overripe fruit, are just some sources of food which can make your home seem like a fantastic place to make a nest.

Shelter

During the winter, the queen wasp will hibernate after being impregnated, in order to ensure her colony’s survival.

These solitary wasps will look for a safe, sheltered location, away from the elements and potential predators, to give themselves the best chance to survive the winter.

As such, the cracks in your walls, attic space, and sheds are all attractive locations for wasps.

Resources

To build wasp nests, the queen will chew up wood fibre from any nearby source before spitting into the desired location and building up a structure.

Wasps will generally use trees or fences as their wood supplies but an attic or shed also provides the ideal resources and this is another reason you may find a wasp nest in these spaces.

Eaves, porch roofs and garages are other common locations for wasp nests to be found.

Wasp Prevention

The easiest way to deal to get rid of wasps on your property is to make your home a less attractive place for these pests to build their nests.

Making some simple changes to your home and your behaviour during the summer months will help to deter wasps from settling and encourage them to go elsewhere.

Reduce Food Availability

As mentioned, human homes are so appealing to wasps due to the wide availability of food sources.

The first step to getting rid of wasps on your property is to make them feel less welcome and limiting access to free food is essential to this.

Ensuring all leftovers are cleared away after an outdoor meal, covering your food, and securing the lids of your garbage cans are all simple precautions you can take that may make a huge difference.

Keep Windows Shut

Perhaps not a realistic suggestion for the entire summer but keeping windows and doors shut, especially in rooms such as the kitchen where food is being prepared, is an effective way to prevent wasps entering your home in the first place.

Avoid Strong Perfumes

Perhaps not the tip you were expecting but a valuable one, nevertheless.

Wasps are attracted to sweet scents as they assume it means the source will be rich in sugar or pollen and a valuable source of food.

Towards the end of summer, wasps become especially aggressive and determined to find the source of such smells and reducing the amount of perfume you wear or switching to a more subtle scent may help discourage wasps from making a nest nearby.

Plant Some Herbs

Your garden is a paradise for wasps in the summer, with flowers and insects thriving.

You may think this makes your green space a major weakness in your fight against wasps.

However, with a quick visit to the garden centre, you can turn it into your greatest weapon.

Wasps hate the aromatic scent of herbs such as wormwood, thyme, and spearmint, and adding just a few such plants to your garden can be a great wasp control measure.

Get Professional Help

Even if you are extremely careful and wear protective clothing, removing an entire nest safely is a very dangerous task and you can risk getting a nasty sting.

If you use shop bought insecticide spray without the proper PPE, stinging wasps are not your biggest concern, as you are also risking breathing spores that are harmful to humans.

At Clark Pest Control, we specialise in eliminating all the wasps including their nests. By dealing with their home and queen, the colony has absolutely zero chance of recovering.

We boast the best team of professionals who have benefitted from extensive training and practical experience in wasp removal.

We first carry out a survey of the area infested with the insects, identify their sources, make an educated assessment, and ultimately come up with the most efficient and safest approach to remove rid your property of the infestation quickly and safely.

To talk to one of our personnel about arranging a free survey, or to book in some pest control service, give us a call now on 0800 808 5615. Alternatively, complete our contact form, and one of our sales representatives will be in touch as soon as possible.