War with the Yellowjackets

While London burns, I have been thinking of burning something around me.

A nest of yellowjackets.

Last week I spied a couple of holes in the backyard with some flies roaming around it.  Not thinking much of it, I ignored it until a few days later when I got a closer look at it and realized that it must have been more than your average housefly…they were yellowjackets.

Research has shown that yellowjackets tend to find holes dug out by rodents and build nests into the ground.  Not unlike a hornet or wasp, these suckers are meant for one thing…and that one thing is to sting.

I started drowning the ‘jackets hoping that would do the trick but the water just kept going in after an hour…damn drought!  In the meantime, when I went to get the hose, I felt a piercing pain on my left calf.  It got me!

I ran like a bat out of hell from the area and I started to panic.  As far as I can remember, I have never been stung by an insect so I had no idea if I’m allergic or not.  I ran inside the house to get Vero in case I would start losing my breath.  She sat me down and asked “Well, can you breathe?” and I realized that I am not allergic!  She took a credit card to remove the stinger (which we found out does not happen with yellowjackets) and put some ice on it.

Now the plan had to begin to get rid of these pests.

After much reading, I discovered the trick is to go out at night when they are all in the nest sleeping.  So Friday night Vero and I bundled up in all manners of clothing in case they tried to sting us.  I didn’t really know what to expect.  The day before, there were dozens of ‘jackets flying around when I was hosing them down.  How many would there be at 11:30 at night?

In the end, we assaulted them with some hornet spray AS WELL AS some foam which is supposed to kill the nest.  I think I may have seen ONE ‘jacket in the grass which I sprayed.

That was that!  I was surprised at how easy it was.

The next day I spied from afar our handiwork and realized that there were two gaping empty holes where the foam had done its business.  Mission accomplished!

Later on in the day, I decided to get proactive and dig out the nest as I had read that if you leave the nest, other yellowjackets can fly in and make another home.  So I figured I would quickly grab the shovel, test the ground and fill it in.

Of course, here I was in the plain daylight with my flip flops and shorts not thinking there was any danger.  There was no activity around the area.  I dig a little here, dig a little there and no problems are encountered.  I was smart enough to grab the remainder of the spray cans.

Lo and behold, I decided to move my shovel a little to the right and I hear a crunch.  In an instant a swarm of yellowjackets erupts from the ground willing to go in for the kill.  That kill was me!

Armed with the spray, I unload the can in 2 seconds (guess there wasn’t much left!) and foam the suckers!  However in the meantime they manage to sting my ankle as well as crawl up my shorts and sting my thigh!  Argh!  I’m in pain, Vero is coming out to ask me something and I’m warning her to stay away.  In the end I admitted defeat as I had run out of foam and it was just too dangerous to stay.

A couple of days later I spy into the hole and I don’t see anything moving.  I’m not falling for this trick again so I foam the hole again just in case.  I wait until dusk and take the shovel to the hole ever so gently but in the end, nothing happens.  I guess the rest of the foam I unleashed on this swarm killed them.

My only fear now is that there are still a few yellowjackets roaming the area after I scared them out of their nest and then subsequently foamed it.  With nothing to return to, they may very well try and find another home…hopefully not around the house!

That was my first adventure with yellowjackets and it wasn’t pleasant at all!  But I hope I got the best of them.

iplaying – Here Tomorrow Gone Today – Lifehouse (Smoke and Mirrors)