I have a dilemma.
Wasps are nibbling at my plums but I know where the nest is and if I tell the git about the nest-hole in his eaves, his roof won't eventually cave in and drop a thousand angry wasps into his bedroom.
Now, while away, I was faced with four plum trees so I already have more plums than an entire herd of bullocks is mourning. Mine have wasp-holes in some. The nest is in a Righteous attic.
I am thinking... The wasps won't get them all, I have enough anyway, if Evil Children reach over they might get one with a wasp burrowed into it especially if I leave the ones beside the fence alone, and telling the Righteous about the nest will spoil the wasps' chances of making their life hell next year.
So I am going for the green option and supporting the wasps.
It is the modern way.
15 comments:
Aye, let nature take its course I say.
(From the keyboard of a wifey who stoned over 60lbs of the things on Saturday night).
I've always liked the much maligned wasp and sat happily next to hundreds of them whilst they slowly carve up my wooden bench for nest material. Yes, leave them.
Leggy,
Thought you might be interested in this.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23877395-anger-as-london-councils-invest-in-tobacco-while-fighting-to-curb-smoking.do
Cheers
Olly
Good choice. I can also add that a years output of plums is a small price to pay for the satisfaction that you could get.
Can I also suggest feeding them during the coming shortage will ensure that they are well looked after in winter and ensure they get a good start early next year. Sugar and water will be fine.
Wasps are nasty little beggars. But that is my prejudice, not yours, and it should not trump their right to a family life and somewhere warm and safe to live.
The family next door wouldn't like it if the council came and bulldozed their house just because people objected to their presence, so why should the poor old wasps suffer the same fate?
Wasps rights now!
I think you weighed up the subject sagely. Go wasps! :)
Wasps are the ideal torment for the Righteous because they are compelled to waffle on about the beneficial role they play in the ecosystem, even as they're being stung. Good for them.
When wasps start to make a nuisance of themselves in late summer, I tip Bendiocarb into their nest holes. It's literally organic.
Tobacco juice spray repels some insects but if you want them gone mix Carbyrl with raspberry jam for them to carry back to the nest. There are better nasties but even harder to get...
First your plums turned purple, now the wasps are biting them. Have you considered seeking medical advice??
Olly - that's very useful in relation to something that's come up today.
Anon - always smoke in greenhouses and put the butts in the compost. The insect pests really don't like it. The plants love it. As a bonus, antismokers won't pinch your plums.
I've found the best way to collect wasp-free plums is to put on the outside light and pick them at night. If they have holes in, I leave them there. Wasps are lazy and will go back to already-holed ones rather than make new holes.
Unlike slugs, who seem to think that one bite from every strawberry is the way to make friends and not get a slug pellet in .177 gauge from a Gat. It's the only kind of slug pellet that's guaranteed to work.
microdave - I'm a smoker. Modern medicine has only one piece of advice to give me and I already know what it is, so visiting the doctor is a waste of time for me.
Anything I get, whether dandruff or leprosy, is going to be smoking-related and they won't even look for any other cause.
Therefore they are useless. The entire NHS could vanish tomorrow and it would make not one jot of difference to me.
Lord T - wasps hibernate about six inches underground so I'll have a nice area of tilled soil ready for them. There's also that cheap honey I bought which was too terrible to eat.
If the Righteous keep their heating on, and I keep feeding them, they might not hibernate...
Wasps can be deterred by hanging up a replica wasps'nest. You can buy one or make it from a balloon covered in papier mache. It works because they are territorial, and if a wasp sees a strange nest it'll get the hell out of the area while it still can. It's better than the drown-in-a-jam-jar trap because wasps kill thousands of caterpillars (they feed them to their grubs) and are good for the garden.
I should have added, they are good for the garden during summer but eat plums and fruit in the autumn, as they have no grubs to feed and are struggling to survive in the cooler air (which they won't, except for the queens which hibernate)
One should report the nest to the local authority but insist that smoke should not be used to eradicate them - no smoke at all without the presence of an ASH representative to ensure that that the smoke did not go anywhere and that the children were all indoors. WE NEED ASH REPRESENTATIVES AT ALL TIMES!
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