by Connie Oswald Stofko
Yellowjackets and hornets have been very active lately, and if they sting, it can hurt.
“But if you can avoid them for another month, nature will take care of them,” said John Farfaglia, extension educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension in Niagara County.
Both yellowjackets and hornets will die off in the cold weather, he said.
The yellowjackets make their home in the ground and hornets make their nest high in a tree. Neither will use the same nest the following year, so you don’t even have to knock the hornets’ nest down.
He discourages people from using pesticides.
“As bad as they are with stinging, they’re still beneficial insects,” he said. “They feed on the larvae of insects that we don’t want around.”
Some people have called Farfaglia wanting to know if they can burn yellowjackets out of the ground, but that’s a bad idea for so many reasons. If you use gasoline, you could contaminate the ground. If the nest is near your house, you have a fire hazard.
If you have yellowjackets or hornets at the entrance to your home or in a wall or ceiling, contact a professional exterminator.
“It’s not a do-it-yourself job,” Farfaglia said.
But if the yellowjackets or hornets are in a spot where you can generally avoid them, just leave them alone. They won’t survive the winter.
I think attracting birds that eat yellow jackets near your house, garden, or lawn should help control these insects.
Thanks for useful information at your article. If yellow jackets are becoming a problem in my place, learning how to keep these aggressive insects at bay would be my top priority.
Kathy, that is a bummer.
They nested in the soffit and managed to get into the house. And swarmed the hummingbird feeders which was an extra bummer…
I talked to John Farfaglia from Cornell Cooperative Extension who said it’s not common, it’s not likely, but it’s possible. He looked it up and found some reports of hornets stinging hummingbirds. If these were baby birds, they were small and defenseless. While he has never heard of it happening, he can’t totally rule it out.
We had a nest of baby birds on our porch and when we returned from vacation our house sitter told us they were killed by hornets. Is this possible?
Barb, I’m sorry to hear that! I bet it hurt. Yes, you can avoid yellowjackets when you know where they are. But it’s tough when you get surprised.
Pam, thanks for that added information.
My husband ran into an under ground nest, panic, got stung, ran, brought several into the house, not good. He will not be pulling anything for a while. Needless to say don’t touch if you do not know what you are doing, sometimes it is better to let nature take its course, I can laugh about it now, but it was not funny at the time. (He cannot laugh about it, he got stung 5 times.)
Knowing the life cycle of yellow jackets can help you avoid them. At this time of year, they are looking for sugar to help their queen winter over. Avoid eating sweets or sugary drinks without lids outside, and don’t make sudden movements with your arms or body. Just slowly walk away. Mother Earth News has a nice article at https://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/pest-control/benefits-of-wasps-yellow-jackets-zw0z1303zkin