Wasps. Just the word alone makes your skin crawl. You’re not alone in worrying about wasps in your yard. Wasps and other stinging insects send more than half a million people in the U.S. to the emergency room every year.
More than just an annoying buzzkill (pun very much intended), wasps are a medical emergency waiting to happen. If you’re wondering how to prevent wasps (and all the havoc they wreak), you’ve come to the right place.
Wasps are most active during late summer and early fall, so it’s important to start working on preventing them in spring. DIY hacks might sound tempting, but when it comes to outsmarting pests, you need to call in the big guns.
To have the best shot at not having wasps this year, it’s important to enlist the help of a professional Portland pest control company like Kanga Pest Control. We’ll explain why in this post.
What Are Wasps?
There are many different types of wasps, even some that you might not know are wasps. For example, yellow jackets are wasps, and so are hornets.
Again, the best way to get rid of wasps in Portland is with the help of a knowledgeable, experienced pest management company like Kanga Pest Control. We’ll start by doing some basic identification. Not all wasps wear the same stripes, and knowing which type we’re dealing with is key to eradicating the problem for good.
Here in Portland, we have several common types of wasps you need to watch out for:
Bald-Faced Hornets
Unlike their golden-hued relatives, these wasps sport a sophisticated black-and-white tuxedo look. Don’t be fooled by their classy appearance, though–they build paper nests and pack a mean punch with their ruthless sting.
Hornets
Larger than their other buzzing relatives, hornets are the “big siblings” of the wasp family. With nesting colonies that house more than 200 workers, they’re busy and, often, bulky too, sporting reddish-brown and yellow coloring.
Mud Daubers
These wasps are the ultimate DIYers – they use mud to construct tubular nests and have a tell-tale stick-thin body that connects their abdomen and thorax. They look delicate but steer clear; their needle-like bodies don’t mean they’re friendly.
Paper Wasps
These wasps get their name from their nest-building skills. They create umbrella-shaped nests out of a papery material. Their brown bodies decorated with red or yellow markings make them easy to spot.
Yellow Jackets
These are the drama queens of the wasp world. Their black and yellow stripes scream “caution,” and their underground nests invite chaos for those who step too close. These social wasps can be incredibly dangerous.
Some Wasps Can Be Dangerously Aggressive
The most dangerous wasps are the aggressive varieties, including yellow jackets, bald-faced hornets, paper wasps, and hornets — which can actually shoot their venom at you, often aiming for your eyes.
The danger is especially high because these wasp species are social and attack when they feel trapped or their nest is threatened.
Yellow jackets are especially known for swarming when their nests are disturbed because they live underground. It’s easy for a child or a lawn mower to unknowingly run over a yellow jacket nest. When that happens, the yellow jackets swarm, delivering multiple stings from many workers in the nest.
When these aggressive species sting, they inject venom that could cause something as harmless as a little pain or itching to a severe allergic reaction or anaphylactic shock. Allergic reactions and anaphylactic shock can both be fatal if left untreated for too long.
It’s for this reason that we highly recommend you not try to get rid of any wasp nests on your property. Instead, call a Portland home pest control service like Kanga Pest Control immediately.
Five Environmentally Friendly Wasp Prevention Tips
Wasp prevention is achievable. You may not be able to prevent wasps from nesting on your property, but you can make your home as inhospitable as possible.
Here are five wasp prevention tips that also happen to be environmentally friendly:
Say Goodbye to Standing Water
Remove all water sources from your property. Get rid of bird baths and empty kiddy pools, fill in depressions in your yard where rainwater puddles, and fix leaky faucets or sprinkler systems.
Also, make sure your gutters are draining appropriately with downspout extenders and splash stones diverting water away from your house.
Declutter Your Garden
Wasps love cozy hiding spots, so get rid of overgrown vegetation, lawn debris, and overhanging branches.
Similarly, keep your garden and your firewood as far away from your house as possible to discourage wasps from building their nests under your eaves or roof overhangs.
Guard Your Garbage
Put tight-fitting lids on all your outside garbage bins and compost heaps so wasps aren’t attracted by food scraps. Keep your garbage bins at least six feet away from your home.
Call in the Pros
Prevention is your best bet for keeping wasps away, but if you discover an active nest, it’s time to call in the pros. Even the best prevention can’t stop a determined wasp from deciding your yard is prime real estate.
Handling a nest on your own, armed with nothing but a broom and a can of bug spray, can land you in real trouble (and, possibly, the emergency room). That’s where we come in.
At Kanga Pest Control, we’ve got the tools, the suits, and the know-how to safely and effectively remove wasp nests from your property. Plus, we can help you pinpoint and fix trouble spots before wasps settle in again.
Wasp Control Starts with You – And Ends with Kanga
Think of us as your friendly neighborhood pest experts, armed and ready to make your yard a no-fly zone for wasps. Prevention is always step one—stay proactive, keep those water sources and food scraps under control, and give your yard a little TLC with pruning and clearing.
But when nests appear, and the buzzing gets too close for comfort, don’t risk it.
Call Kanga Pest Control. We’re here to make sure you enjoy a sting-free yard and that wasps don’t overstay their unwelcome.
Contact us today for a fast, safe, and free estimate. After all, you deserve nothing less than the best.
