We only ever discover them on a tractor, when prophylactically running isn’t much of an option. I have no advice other than just keep running. I got a good laugh out of this, though. It definitely sounds like a problem we’d find ourselves in here. I’m always excited to find fellow beekeepers on Substack!
Prophylactic running away is always a good idea, in my experience.
Susan and I came home from holiday one year to find that European wasps had moved into the cladding of our house. I thought it would be a bright idea to seal up their entrance.
It was … interesting. A few times a day, one or two befuddled, not very aggressive, probably newly hatched wasps would appear in a random room of the house and have to be dealt with, variously gassed, swatted or vacuumed up. Clearly they were in the floors and looking for ways out. I never knew how many cracks there were in our home until I had to locate and seal them all. It took about a month. They haven't come back.
The adults trying to get in to feed the queen and bubs were dissuaded with chemical warfare, interspersed with … you got it … running away. Yeah, beekeeping suits are handy.
From time to time, we’ll have wasps find gaps in our soffit and build a nest and then start finding random wasps in our house that have a poor sense of direction and gotten lost. One of the joys of leaving in old farmhouse, lol
If given no other option, I would slowly remove anything important or fragile from around the box, probably at night when they're more dormant. Once I had emptied that corner as much as needed, I'd grab a long hook of some kind, and topple the whole dang thing over from as close to the door as possible.
They're staying because they're safe. Break the house, make it not a safe place anymore and hopefully they'll find a new one. Just...be ready to run!
I built my business on bees, and have done quite a bit of "bee" removal in and around my local community over the years. I say "bee" with quotes, because when it came to the removal aspect, everyone swore up and down it was bees troubling them, and when I landed on site 9 times out of 10 it was either yellow jackets or paper wasps.🤦♀️
And still I would remove the offending nest for the little old Granny or the panicked mum with kiddos.
Suit up, beekeeper suit is ideal, veil or mosquito head-net, gloves, make sure to tape your pant legs closed or wear muck boots to tuck your pants into.
I always used trash bags, but yes, contractor bag works, or a trash bin or bucket with lid etc. Anything you can use to quickly scoop or scrape the nest into. Having a bee-smoker on hand helps. Then tie the bag or cover the bucket and leave it for 24-48 hours.
I recommend doing this at night if possible. But the protective gear is the key here. The angry buzzing and dive bombing is intense, yes, but so long as you are dressed appropriately, you should be safe.
I have had quite a few “swarm” calls that have turned out to be yellow jackets. Usually I politely decline those and recommend they call a local pest control company. Sometimes they say they already have and the pest control folks recommended calling me. Seems like nobody wants to fool with yellow jackets, lol. Kudos to you for going extra mile. Glad to hear others have also thought of trash bag method.
I'll do it, but I make them pay me lol. The free bees are worth the drive time and extra effort. Yellow jackets and wasps are a different level entirely.
We only ever discover them on a tractor, when prophylactically running isn’t much of an option. I have no advice other than just keep running. I got a good laugh out of this, though. It definitely sounds like a problem we’d find ourselves in here. I’m always excited to find fellow beekeepers on Substack!
I’ve found them on a lawnmower once before, but thankfully have yet to find them on a tractor. Hope your bees are doing well
Prophylactic running away is always a good idea, in my experience.
Susan and I came home from holiday one year to find that European wasps had moved into the cladding of our house. I thought it would be a bright idea to seal up their entrance.
It was … interesting. A few times a day, one or two befuddled, not very aggressive, probably newly hatched wasps would appear in a random room of the house and have to be dealt with, variously gassed, swatted or vacuumed up. Clearly they were in the floors and looking for ways out. I never knew how many cracks there were in our home until I had to locate and seal them all. It took about a month. They haven't come back.
The adults trying to get in to feed the queen and bubs were dissuaded with chemical warfare, interspersed with … you got it … running away. Yeah, beekeeping suits are handy.
From time to time, we’ll have wasps find gaps in our soffit and build a nest and then start finding random wasps in our house that have a poor sense of direction and gotten lost. One of the joys of leaving in old farmhouse, lol
If given no other option, I would slowly remove anything important or fragile from around the box, probably at night when they're more dormant. Once I had emptied that corner as much as needed, I'd grab a long hook of some kind, and topple the whole dang thing over from as close to the door as possible.
They're staying because they're safe. Break the house, make it not a safe place anymore and hopefully they'll find a new one. Just...be ready to run!
Good idea, hadn't thought of that yet. Lol, I'm always ready to bravely run away when it comes to yellow jackets.
Yellow jackets are Nature's way of keeping human beings humble, I think. Nothing that tiny should have that much of a painful attitude problem!
Pride goeth before the run 🏃
I have been using Super 77 spray glue -- or WD40 -- but the glue is amazing and glues them down at the nest .. do it early when its cold out
I hadn’t thought about spray glue. I’ll have to that my yellow jacket arsenal
I built my business on bees, and have done quite a bit of "bee" removal in and around my local community over the years. I say "bee" with quotes, because when it came to the removal aspect, everyone swore up and down it was bees troubling them, and when I landed on site 9 times out of 10 it was either yellow jackets or paper wasps.🤦♀️
And still I would remove the offending nest for the little old Granny or the panicked mum with kiddos.
Suit up, beekeeper suit is ideal, veil or mosquito head-net, gloves, make sure to tape your pant legs closed or wear muck boots to tuck your pants into.
I always used trash bags, but yes, contractor bag works, or a trash bin or bucket with lid etc. Anything you can use to quickly scoop or scrape the nest into. Having a bee-smoker on hand helps. Then tie the bag or cover the bucket and leave it for 24-48 hours.
I recommend doing this at night if possible. But the protective gear is the key here. The angry buzzing and dive bombing is intense, yes, but so long as you are dressed appropriately, you should be safe.
Hope this helps!!
I have had quite a few “swarm” calls that have turned out to be yellow jackets. Usually I politely decline those and recommend they call a local pest control company. Sometimes they say they already have and the pest control folks recommended calling me. Seems like nobody wants to fool with yellow jackets, lol. Kudos to you for going extra mile. Glad to hear others have also thought of trash bag method.
I'll do it, but I make them pay me lol. The free bees are worth the drive time and extra effort. Yellow jackets and wasps are a different level entirely.