Wasps are seasonal and spring sees the emergence of the queen from hibernation who quickly gets to work nest building and lays her first eggs. Nests are often excavated in dry soil or constructed in roof voids. The first workers emerge a few weeks later usually in early June; however, depending on the weather they have been have known this activity to start as early as April/May! The numbers of workers in an average nest reach in the region of 30,000.

Autumn is primarily the mating season between the males and queens and sees the social breakdown of the nest. In winter the queen hibernates and all the males and workers die, the nest is then made redundant and never re-used, although it has been known for an adjacent nest to be built, so caution must be exercised when removing old nests.

The Common Wasp: Treatment & Prevention

The most direct method of treating wasps is to destroy the nest; using a insecticide dust or liquid, depending on the location of the nest. However, when dealing with commercial / industrial sized problems, wasp control can be approached in a very different manner. Insecticidal baits are placed to intercept the wasp 'en route' to and from the feeding site. The bait is then taken back to the nest and kills the young. There has been remarkable results on traditionally heavily infested sites by seasonal baiting to catch the developing nests.

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