Jaspers!

[Rosti]

A noticeable increase in wasp activity over the last two days in Yorks and earlier than I recall in recent years. I have been closing down entrances on a weak hive and x2 nuc's and setting some strategic wasp traps today.

Time for the annual debate ....

Protect your weak colonies as well you can or take the approach "nature is as nature does".

Discuss!

 

[protheroe]

i have only seen 2 wasps in the last month so far,hope it stays that way

 

[justme]

Thank you for the warning as we've seen almost none down here yet.
:.)

 

[Winker]

I have only seen 2 wasps all year and those were the 2 queens i killed at the start of the year. Its been a surprisingly quite year for wasps around here

 

[Rosti]

I have only seen 2 wasps all year and those were the 2 queens i killed at the start of the year. Its been a surprisingly quite year for wasps around here

Likewise Winker, just seems to have kicked off in the last day or so, why, who knows, perhaps a colony or two within 100m of my apiary? Either way in one day (since 10am) I have a trap with about 50 wasps in it.

 

[Bates]

Have been collecting all our water bottles for past 3 months now for wasp traps, but not seen any yet? Expecting a few at a Perry Orchard site we have so we are prepared for it.
Quiet year for wasps so far it seems or maybe I've spoken too soon.

 

[Chris Luck]

Protect your weak colonies as well you can or take the approach "nature is as nature does".

No brainer for me, let nature take it's course...

...and anyway, I've got mean bees.

Chris

 

[yeogi75]

one hornet and tree wasps last couple of days,last wasp beaten up by the little head butting fluffy doorman spinning around on the floor till the wasp got away,the rotwieler is back on the door

 

[oliver90owner]

Wasps galore were busy feeding on nectar (competing with bumbles) on a tree/shrub outside the bungalow in Scotland (near Inverness) while I was on holiday a couple weeks ago. I was looking for a swarm, it was so noisy, but not a single honey bee in sight.

 

[TOBY-3652]

Not many here.. Up to now ive been called to 17 nests last year up to about 50 as of now

 

[victor meldrew]

No wasps around here I have huge stands of balsam which is normally heavily worked by wasps but only bumblies and honies this year ! I do check daily ! Bees are working balsam within the apiary immediately behind the hives (Ooops ,there goes another myth!}
Hover flies are also thin on the ground !
VM

 

[psafloyd]

A noticeable increase in wasp activity over the last two days in Yorks and earlier than I recall in recent years. I have been closing down entrances on a weak hive and x2 nuc's and setting some strategic wasp traps today.

Time for the annual debate ....

Protect your weak colonies as well you can or take the approach "nature is as nature does".

Discuss!

Very few plums this year. Might be why they're on the hunt for sweet stuff...

 

[psafloyd]

No brainer for me, let nature take it's course...

...and anyway, I've got mean bees.

Chris

YOu mean they don't like to share their honey?

 

[Chris Luck]

They certainly do not except with drones.

Chris

 

[Outlander]

Non at mine as yet but Village Girls has had a few, I killed one coming out of a weak nuc over there today.

 

[Andy Duff]

Down on the allotments, not a single wasp seen, a couple of ladybirds, a couple of cabbage whites, the carder bees have disappeared, no hoverflies seen, the 2 sites of ground nesting bees have been washed away, there are no aphids attacking the plants and there are only a few bumbles knocking about. Looks like it was not just honey bees suffering in the poor weather.

 

[flemage]

Nothing yet in Devon. Haven't seen a single one since spring

 

[Chris Luck]

It's a very poor year here as well so far for Hornets and different wasps although happily I'm just starting to see an increase in V.Rufa nests. Even the paper wasps which are normally everywhere are less than normal and all this is on land that's managed for wildlife and nothing is persecuted, (apart from introduced species).

Chris

 

[BDCS]

I did only my second wasp nest Friday

 

[Luminos]

Far fewer wasps here - one nest in my greenhouse (I hope they're catching the bugs in there) - but, bizarrely, more European hornets seen this year than last.