How do I get rid of wasps?

Meat wasps nest in gopher holes.. As soon as the air warms they become active. I don't want to poison them. Ideas? There are a lot! Thanks!

  6 answers
  • Everything Pretty Everything Pretty on Mar 11, 2019

    I use Seven dust on nests in the ground.

  • Lifestyles Homes Lifestyles Homes on Mar 11, 2019

    I had to drop Diazanon-like granules into their holes with a very long funnel at dusk.


    I wore a drapery sheer over my head, held on by a white baseball cap (they dart at dark objects), plus long sleeved shirt, gloves, and long pants.

    They also do not like long grass, BTW.

  • Deanna Nassar Deanna Nassar on Mar 11, 2019

    An effective way to get rid of ground wasps is with a mixture of natural dish or laundry soap and water. Combine 3/4 cup of your chosen soap with 1 gallon of water. It's best to approach wasp nests after the sun has gone down and there is no visible wasp activity.

    This works if you can find the entrance but even sprays have the same problem. Personally after being stung by everything except Africanized bees; I say kill them. They are extremely territorial and I have seen hornets chase people. You may save the life of an allergic person by killing rather than forcing relocation. Wasp and hornet spray is made by Raid and works very well and quickly.

  • Lynn Sorrell Lynn Sorrell on Mar 11, 2019

    Everything says to kill them they are actually a beneficial bug/creature eating other bugs,but exteremly dangerous becareful around them.Especially pets or kids in yard while they are active.Noise around hive entrance will cause them to attck stinging multiple times. Here's one way. If you see yellow jackets coming and going out of a single hole on relatively flat ground, you’re in luck. Get a large glass bowl and use it to carefully cover the hole first thing on a cool morning, when the cold weather keeps them inside the nest or moving very slowly outside of it.Or at night don't use flashlight they will be drawn to it & come out.

    Never approach a nest in the heat of the day or even on a warm evening — and always have a helper standing by with a can of cooking spray — like Pam — to soak any hornets that do try to get near you. Oil sprays are safe for you, and highly effective against all insects. (True horticultural oils are one of the mainstays of organic pest control.)

    Leave the bowl in place and the yellow jackets will die out. They can’t dig a new entrance/exit and will be trapped inside. (Surprisingly, these underground nesters are not burrowing insects. The queen always begins a new nest in the spring by using an existing mouse,vole or gopher hole.) here's additional info. https://wtop.com/garden-plot/2015/07/garden-plot-best-way-get-rid-yellow-jackets/

  • Lifestyles Homes Lifestyles Homes on Mar 13, 2019

    My Ground-living wasps were much bigger than bumble bees, much. There were swarms of 50 of them and they took over my entire back yard. I couldn’t hang laundry outside without them coming over to herd me out of their territory.

    I had to kill them, or they were going to kill me.

    I couldn’t mow the yard without doing it at 6 am or 8 pm.

    Sorry, but they’re not nice honey bees.