Hello all,
I need to clear some ground on the allotment for a peach tree and two cherry trees, but, apart from tree roots to clear I have a wasp nest that only seems to have appeared this year. As good pollinators, I,m not sure about sprays etc..
Any suggestions..?
It'll be dead or dying by now. Just clear it. Wasps are not an endangered species.
The wasps will have finished with the nest as the colony has broken down. However just be careful. There might be a few stragglers in there. I am not sure they are pollinaters. They are very useful insects in that they prey on caterpillars and the like to feed their grubs during the summer. It is a pity that they become a nuisance when the brood rearing stops in late summer and they then go searching for sweet stuff and try to raid bee hives. During the summer the adult wasps get a sweet substance off their grubs. They only become a nuisance when that source of food disappears at the end of summer.
Thanks both. That makes the job a lot easier.
After a good cold snap you can be sure the wasps will be gone. :)
I had a massive nest under my lilac; they've all disappeared now. They'll soon be gone.
I agree that cold weather kills off the wasps. But make sure you clear the nest completely, and keep a close eye on the site in the spring: we have wasps returning year after year to build in a bathroom airbrick!