While we are absolutely nature lovers on the farm, we are NOT fond of wasps, hornets, and yellow jackets making nests in our immediate area. They are more than mere annoyances with painful stings–they represent a real threat when my mom, who is allergic to all three, comes to visit.

While you aren’t likely to be truly bugged by stinging insects until the pinnacle of summer, NOW is the time to get a head start on keeping their summer populations down. Why?

Late winter and early spring are when the queens emerge. 

Wasp, hornet, and yellowjacket queens all hibernate in winter. Paper wasp queens emerge first, in late winter; with the first warm days of spring, hornet and yellow jacket queens return. Catching the queens now means reducing the number of nests you’ll have to contend with later in the year.

Placing attractants and traps out now for these stinging insects might not yield a large volume of insects in the trap, but the ones you catch just might be the most meaningful to your peaceful patio time later on!