Wasp nest in my shrubs!

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For the past few years I have found wasp nests in a few of my shrubs. They are always small but the problem I'm having is trimming the bushes! I have no idea they are even there until it's too late. I have been stung many times. :( After that my husband will come out and spray the nest with your typical wasp spray.

Is that what we should be doing or is there something we should be using on the shrubs to actually prevent the wasps from coming in the first place?
 
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For the past few years I have found wasp nests in a few of my shrubs. They are always small but the problem I'm having is trimming the bushes! I have no idea they are even there until it's too late. I have been stung many times. :( After that my husband will come out and spray the nest with your typical wasp spray.

Is that what we should be doing or is there something we should be using on the shrubs to actually prevent the wasps from coming in the first place?
I don't believe there is anything to prevent them
 

zigs

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You need something that looks like a wasp's nest to hang in the shrubs, they won't build a nest near an existing one.
 

zigs

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Oh, and if you've been stung a lot, get some antihistamines for the first aid kit, you might develop sensitivity to them.
 

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Zigs has a good idea about putting something that looks like a nest in the shrubs to make the wasp think there is already a nest there. I don't know of any other way to stop the wasp from making a nest in your shrubs. You may want to spray the shrubs before you start to trim them just to make sure there are none there to sting you before you start to distrub the nest if there is one in the shrubs.
 
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Oh, and if you've been stung a lot, get some antihistamines for the first aid kit, you might develop sensitivity to them.
Personally I would do the shrub pruning in the late fall and winter when they aren't around. Wasp's are extremely beneficial in the garden.
 
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I don't believe there is anything to prevent them
That makes me sad :( I was under the same impression that was the case as well. It seems to only happen on certain shrubs. I guess I just have to be more careful. The shrub is thinner than most, you can see through to the actual branches a bit. I will have to keep my eyes open for them. Darn wasps! :/ Thank you for your reply!
 
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I don't know if wasp traps would repel wasp from making a home in your bushes but I know it may slow it down a bit. I had an issue with bald face hornets making a home on m shrubs . The nest was about the size of a volley ball and they really attack. I decided to set some traps around my house to keep it from happening again.
 
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Oh, and if you've been stung a lot, get some antihistamines for the first aid kit, you might develop sensitivity to them.
Great ideas! I never thought about building up a sensitivity to being stung over and over. I guess it just never crossed my mind. I'm going tomorrow to get an antihistamine to keep on hand just in case. It just never fails every time I prune the bushes I get stung. :( I have learned that wearing long pants makes it a little harder for them. :0 At this point I think I will try almost anything.

Thank you again for your help !
danyel :)
 
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Zigs has a good idea about putting something that looks like a nest in the shrubs to make the wasp think there is already a nest there. I don't know of any other way to stop the wasp from making a nest in your shrubs. You may want to spray the shrubs before you start to trim them just to make sure there are none there to sting you before you start to distrub the nest if there is one in the shrubs.
That's what my neighbor suggested too. I know it is always certain bushes that they make nests in so I have it narrowed down to one or two in my landscaping. It would be easy to do and would prevent me from being stung! :(

I'm going to the home store tomorrow to find out if there is a spray that wont harm the actual plant. I don't want to kill the shrub in the process. That would be bad. :)
Thank you !
Danyel :)
 
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I don't know if wasp traps would repel wasp from making a home in your bushes but I know it may slow it down a bit. I had an issue with bald face hornets making a home on m shrubs . The nest was about the size of a volley ball and they really attack. I decided to set some traps around my house to keep it from happening again.
I will try anything at this point and that makes perfect sense. Although we have never tried using the traps, I am sure it would deter them from coming close to the bushes and make them want to head to the trap instead. :) A good thing!!

Thank you for your help and suggestions!
Danyel :)
 

zigs

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Oh, and vinegar to treat the sting. Wasps stings are alkaline, bees are acid, so you'd need baking soda for a bee sting.
 
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Oh, and vinegar to treat the sting. Wasps stings are alkaline, bees are acid, so you'd need baking soda for a bee sting.
I think I need you on a permanent basis zigs!! You are so knowledgeable and know so much about gardening and things related to it! :) I will definitely keep that in mind just in case another sting happens. ( which I'm planning on heading out this weekend to trim those darn bushes :) ) Hoping not to have any other issues but very good to know!!

Thank you again for all your help !
Danyel :)
 

zigs

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:D Tend to find out these things when you've got a wasp phobia :D

I was on a fishing boat in the middle of the English channel, saw a wasp fly past, next thing I knew it'd stung my neck

No vinegar on a fishing boat :rolleyes:
 
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For the past few years I have found wasp nests in a few of my shrubs. They are always small but the problem I'm having is trimming the bushes! I have no idea they are even there until it's too late. I have been stung many times. :( After that my husband will come out and spray the nest with your typical wasp spray.

Is that what we should be doing or is there something we should be using on the shrubs to actually prevent the wasps from coming in the first place?


As wasps and their nests are in abundance and a very a common problem where I live and I'm actually allergic to wasp stings - I would very definitely agree with what Zigs has already said regarding - making sure that you have both some antihistamines as well as some vinegar on hand - as both are extremely effective - but that said - only if you use them immediately after being stung - otherwise you are quite likely to have to go through the painful progress as the sting starts to swell.

However how to avoid being stung is a difficult one - especially as there is absolutely nothing that will stop wasps from making nests in trees, bushes or anywhere for that matter and to be honest the last thing you want to do is start spraying them if they are already in a shrub - as not only do you stand the chance of damaging your shrub but you increase your chances of being stung - as it generally makes them more aggressive .

To be honest the only thing that works - is to remove the wasp nest altogether - which depending on the type of wasp will either be at ground level or underneath the foliage of the upper branches - as so long as the nest remains in place - no amount of spraying will deter the wasps - as because you only get rid of a few that way and not the whole colony - they will carry on multiplying and making their nest bigger.

If its any help - what we do where I am - is check all the likely places that wasps may nest in the early spring when they are least active and remove as many as we can find - which is followed by being extremely vigilant with anything that we do in the garden throughout the summer months until they become less active in the fall - like for instance always checking plants from a distance before doing anything to them - by gently disturbing the foliage with something long handled and if we do find a nest - once we've located it - we remove it in the evening when the wasps are least active.

I appreciate that what I've said probably doesn't sound too encouraging - but after having had to deal with this garden problem on a regular basis for very many years - I can assure you that there is unfortunately no other solution - as removing the nests is the one and only way that this problem can be dealt with.
 

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