NOT BEHIND MY HIVE!

Honey - you're going to have to find a different spot! Last week I discovered these "nasties" (bald-faced/bold-faced hornets) hanging out in the evergreen behind my hive.

Now, now....wasps & hornets are still an important part of our environment and should not needlessly be killed....UNLESS, they're bothering and endangering activity close to them. And that - they ARE. They're VERY protective of their nest/territory - and they are RIGHT BEHIND my hive. So - we have a conflict.

They do NOT AS OF YET have a nest in the tree. They build their nice big paper nests in the spring. This is the time of year when the NEW QUEENS have been released and are looking for "sheltered" areas to OVERWINTER - so that they can build in the spring. My evergreens apparently fit the bill.

MY PLAN of ATTACK? Beesuit, maybe some smoke, lawnmower, and a BIG CANNING POT FULL OF BOILING WATER. I'm going to suit up and MOW under the tree - so I can see what I'm dealing with - she might have found a RODENT HOLE to overwinter in. Next - the BOILING WATER (it's a chemical free way to get rid of ant nests too!) If the mower doesn't get her - the boiling water will.....and my backup plan? ETHER (yes - starting fluid) - goes right into their breathing systems - evaporates and doesn't leave much chemical residue for my bees to find.

I'm just waiting for the day to warm up a little and for the dew in the grass to evaporate....