Do Wasps Return to the Same Nest Every Year? A Guide for Grafton Gardens
Keeping a simple record through the season turns vague worry into useful information, and shows how a nest develops from a queen to a full colony.
Why keep a diary
People often cannot remember when they first noticed wasps, or where. A written record fixes the details and shows you patterns over the years. It need not be elaborate. A line on a phone or a note on the calendar will do.
Since old nests are never reused, each year starts afresh. The diary helps you see which parts of your property are most attractive to new queens.
A phone camera is the best tool for the job. Take the same photograph of each side of the house every month and you will see changes that are hard to notice from day to day.
Many people find that having a simple structure encourages them to keep going. Choose a day, such as the first Saturday of the month, and look at the same places in the same order.
March and April
In March, check the sites where nests have been found before and take pictures of the building and outbuildings. In April, when wasps start building depending on the weather, look for a single large wasp investigating gaps, walls and the ground.
- Record the date of any queen you see.
- Note which gap or hole she seems to like.
- Look again a few days later for any building.
- Do not disturb her.
Mild spells in March sometimes tempt queens out early, but a cold snap can send them back into shelter. Do not be alarmed if you see a large wasp in a doorway on a sunny day, as long as she goes on her way.
A tick-list works well. List the main sites: eaves, vents, shed roof, hedge, bank and bins. Tick them off, and add a note if anything has changed since your last visit.
Mark the first warm, still day of the year in your diary as a prompt to walk round the building and outbuildings, since that is usually when queens are most visible.
May and June
The nest grows in these months, and the first workers arrive. A new nest is still small, and traffic at the entrance is light. It is an excellent time to get it treated, since the colony is still small and the risk of stings is lower.
Note the location and what you can see from a distance. Watch for a pattern that shows regular traffic, and keep children and pets away from the area.
Write down how many wasps you can count passing the entrance in one minute. You do not need a precise figure. An approximate sense of the traffic helps you compare one visit with another.
Early treatment has practical advantages. The nest is simple to reach, the colony is small, and the household is not disrupted for long. There is no price difference for a small nest or a large one, as the fixed price applies.
If you share the garden with others, such as family or allotment neighbours, agree who is going to check which areas. Split the walk-round between you and the whole plot gets covered without anyone having to go near a nest.
July and August
By July the colony is growing fast, and in August it peaks. A nest can hold as many as 2,000 wasps by then. More wasps come to the garden table, and the risk of a sting goes up. Note any increase in traffic, and mark the nest site from a distance.
These are the months when most people ring for help. Writing down the date you first saw wasps, and how the numbers have changed, helps the technician understand the situation.
Remember that the weather affects what you see. A cool, wet week keeps the wasps inside, and a hot day brings them out. Try to check at similar times and in similar conditions.
Hot spells and thundery weather can make wasps more irritable. Plan garden tasks for cooler parts of the day, and keep an eye on any area where you have recorded a nest.
September and after
In September, the colony starts to decline. The workers die and new queens leave to find shelter. By October the nest is empty, and by winter it is quiet. Record when activity stopped, and take a picture of the empty nest.
This is also the time to plan the tidy-up and any repairs. The diary will help you decide where to focus.
Autumn is also a time to check how many gaps you have repaired and how many remain. Mark them off on your list so that you are ready for the next season.
If you have had a nest treated, note the date and what was done. It makes later conversations easier.
Review the whole season in October. What did you see, where, and when? If you saw a queen in the same spot twice, note that as a place to watch. If a nest was treated, record where it was.
Booking in Grafton
A single nest is £80 fixed, with one visit guaranteed, and each additional nest on the same property is £40 extra. No extra cost is added for where you live. Staff are fully insured and qualified, and Grafton and the villages around it are covered seven days a week. Same-day treatment can be requested.
Dial 07916 322 280 to get a visit booked. There is also an online booking form. You can book an evening or weekend slot, and use the form for emergencies outside office hours. Keep clear of the nest until the technician arrives.
Bring your diary into the conversation if you have kept one. Dates of first sightings and rough estimates of traffic give the technician a good picture of how long the nest has been developing.
Wasps on your property in Grafton?
Fixed price £80 per nest, no call-out charge, same-day service available.