Nest of yellow jackets

[Travis]

I am not a Yellow Jacket person or a bee person for that matter

. I was mowing the grass and came across yellow jackets in the ground. It looks like a nice size nest as I stepped right into it. I thought "huh? must be a chipmunk hole" so I went back to look at it and yellow jackets came flying out.

As I saw them flying out I ran back into my house and here I am typing about it

. Thank goodness I did not get stung once. My lawn mower is still outside by the nest too.

Any ideas on how to kill a yellow jacket nest in the ground or should I hire someone (as I always end up having someone else to do the job - Just due to buget cuts the light at the end of the tunnel has been turned off. That is why I am thinking doing it my self)? What would you do? Pour gas down the nest?

Travis

 

[PlantAKiss]

Yellow jackets are so agressive! They will go after you with a vengeance.

Yep, I've heard to pour gasoline down the hole. Do not light it! I guess the fumes take care of it.

If you get stung...don't remove the stinger with your fingers. Take a credit card and GENTLY scrape it out. If you use your fingers, you will squeeze it and squirt more venom into your skin. At least that is what my friend was told by the emergency room folks when she was stung multiple times after running a LAWNMOWER over a hole cutting the grass.

They must not care for lawnmowers too much.

Suzanne

 

[Travis]

Day 1: Nerves are way to bad

. I went outside and could not really find the hole/nest. Had a gallon of gas in one hand and flashlight in other. I was covered from head to toe and still could not do it. That is odd I have done crazier things then this but do not have the will-power to kill the nest...

I will try tomorrow. I am sweating like pig! Bees 1 Travis 0

Thanks PlantAKiss for saying they are agressive and will go after me with a vengeance. That did not help me thought process...j/k but true.

 

[eplants02]

Wow I never heard that before..wasps nesting in the grass.
Anyway if we usually have a problem with wasps..I usually take care of it and never got stung.

I usually drench the nest with water than go in for the kill or feed them to my CP.

 

[Daniel]

hehe, I had a bee hive near me once, I recommend the bug spray, the one where it shoots from far away, like a stream of posion =D. It will kill some of your grass, but it will kills the bees instantly. It always work for me. Just remember not to breathe in the fumes. Talking about fumes, did you know if your not 18 years or older you can't buy white out.

 

[vft guy in SJ]

Umm Travis.. I hate to make a bad situation worse.. But what Suzanne said about the stinger is only true with bees... Wasps do not lose their stingers and die after stinging you.. they will sting you over and over and over again..

Steve

 

[nepenthes gracilis]

Yeah tell me about it vft guy! I knocked down a basketball sized bald faced hornet nest at my grandmas and one got on my leg and jabbed me 3 time real quick. For a ground nest Travis why not leave the lawn mower over them on? It'll slice em up as they come out of the ground! hehe. Well my grandfather does (he is nuts BTW) is do hat suzzane said, throw gas down there but he uses kerosene and lights it. It lights gradually and does explode just burn hot.

 

[Dyflam]

Gas bad idea... hire somebody. People die from yellowjackets.

Yellowjacket info.

 

[mcrwt644]

I had three nests of yellow jackets like this when I was younger. It isn't fun to get rid of them, but the gas is the best way to go. my father and I took care of all three of these nests in that manner. Night of course is the best time to do it. Take a gallon or so of gas, and find the nest. dump it down the hole as they are not as active at night (I mean don't stand there forever), come back a bit later (the colder the night the better), and torch the suckers. just chuck a match down there, watch the ground heave and make a "boom", repeat if necessary. It probably won't be necessary to do again, but who knows...

 

[Travis]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (mcrwt644 @ Aug. 13 2003,7:3

</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Take a gallon or so of gas, and find the nest.  dump it down the hole as they are not as active at night (I mean don't stand there forever), come back a bit later (the colder the night the better), and torch the suckers.  just chuck a match down there, watch the ground heave and make a "boom", repeat if necessary.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
I am not sure if that is safe to burn gas like that near the city limits? It would be interesting though

. Will gas alone kill the nest? I am hearing that gas alone will not do the job but diesel will. I do not want to waste time with gas if it does not kill the nest.  Any thoughts on diesel? Beside it smells really bad. If I do not take care of the nest tonight I will hire someone to do the job.

Travis

 

[mcrwt644]

Travis, I don't know about the "city", but I did it in the suburbs of philly. I don't know if gas alone will do it, I just like the insurance (with the lighting of the gas) as those nests can be like a maze sometimes...

 

[Daniel]

Travis don't use the gasoline =(.
</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote </td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">
Using gasoline to kill insects is illegal

Last night NewsCenter 16 brought you a story on wasps and yellow jackets. One beekeeper told us you can kill the bees by pouring gasoline into the holes in the ground and covering them up with a bucket.

While that is an effective way to get rid of wasps and yellow jackets, the St. Joseph County Health Department says it's illegal. If a lot of people use gasoline it can get into the groundwater and cause contamination.

If you get caught pouring gas in the ground you could wind up with a fine of up to $1500 from the county. As for an alternative, experts say insecticides should work. If not, you can call your local health department to get more information.

[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>

 

[PYRO213]

Spray them with lots of soapy water and they will die.

 

[hydro]

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (DKiM128 @ Aug. 13 2003,04:57)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Talking about fumes, did you know if your not 18 years or older you can't buy white out.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
A long time ago I was at a store trying to buy some rubber cement for a legit purpose (that is, glueing paper together

) and they wouldn't let me buy it. Rediculous.

 

[schloaty]

When I was a kid my buddies and I found a yellowjacket nest in the side of one of the kid's house. We had no bee spray, so we used whatever we could find in the garage: Rustoff, windex, WD-40...you name it, it got squirted in there.

I was so juiced on adrenaline I didn't even know I was stung until I got in the shower 2 hours later and said, gee, my leg sure itches....I had three stings. Not too bad, if you ask me!

Needless to say, I DON'T recomend this approach. The bee/wasp poison with a 25' range is the best way to go.

 

[Travis]

1--></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (schloaty @ Aug. 14 2003,02

1)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">The bee/wasp poison with a 25' range is the best way to go.[/QUOTE]<span id='postcolor'>
Good idea! I will buy the spray if I can find one that goes twenty five feet or find one close enough and spray the poison in the nest. I will be in my jeep and spray from there. If things go wrong just roll up the window and drive away for a bit.

May look like a hick but I do not care!

Thanks for all the help,
Travis

ps
I will let you know how goes.

 

[Travis]

On second thought I will just walk up at night and spray the nest instead driving up and spraying.

 

[Pyro]

RAID makes a really effective wasp and hornet spray. I think it has a range of 25-30 feet. Go out at late evening, when it is cooler and the sun has set. FInd the nest and start spraying the entrance and a few inches around it. The instant you see one of them back off and spray from a distance. Repeat every couple days if necessary. By spraying the entrance you effectivly trap the nest into poisioning itself because the poision effects them every time they enter or exit.

Or, if you are feeling suicidal and know exatly where the entrance is you can stick a hose in it and turn it on fill blast. You shred the nest, drown the larvae, most of the adults and if you are lucky the queen. Regardless after that much damage they usually move to a new location.

 

[Travis]

Day 2: I made progress as I sprayed the hole/nest for about twenty seconds. I had two sprays (Ortho and Spectracide)one in each hand. I kept at it until I saw them coming out and ran back in the house *Wooooo*. I think I will have a better understanding of how to spray. Tomorrow should be a better day for killing. I doubt I killed the nest but it is a start. Thanks for all (I am using "all" because I do not want to leave people out

) the help.

I know what schloaty means as you get a shot of adrenaline *Wooooo*!

Travis

 

[mcrwt644]

As for pouring gas into the ground, it may be illegal, but what about all the chemicals spilled on the roads from improperly maintained vehicles that washes into the rivers? It is a nearly identical situation, besides where is that gas comes from in the first place??
IF you can see the nest try this...
I was in pa recently and had the misfortune of running into about a half dozen hornets nests, mean suckers. My dad restores cars and we used some really nasty stuff called Brakekleen. It is some really mean cleaner for car parts. Anywho, this stuff KILLS ON CONTACT. I mean knocks em down in mid air. NOTHING, and I mean NOTHING is like this stuff. If you can see the nest, use this stuff, it is about $2 a can at any car parts store. I had two hornets come right for me and I hit them once and they dropped. They will get back up to fly away, but won't make it very far...good luck