Do Yellow Jackets Nest in the Ground?

Yes, Yellow Jackets do nest in the ground! Yellow jackets often choose underground areas as one of their most favored spots to build a nest. Yellow jackets resemble bees in size and shape. But they don’t have any fur on their body. Instead, they have a plastic coating that makes them look dangerous. Yellow jackets can turn extremely aggressive and sting you multiple times if you disturb its nest. Usually, wasps won’t attack unless they feel that you are a threat to them. But, yellow jackets are wasps that get provoked quickly.

Where Do Yellow Jackets Nest?
Yellow jackets build their nest in almost any place that is secluded. It can be on tree branches or in small holes made by burrowing animals like chipmunks, squirrels, groundhogs, moles and various other animals. They can even nest on walls of your house, under the cracks of doors, below window sills, down in the attics, under bushes and tall grasses. But, the worst situation is when they make nests underground. These nests are so difficult to find. So, if you are wondering how to find yellow jacket nest in ground, the best way is to follow their path. You can observe them entering and exiting from holes in the ground during mornings and evenings. The holes will be very small. Hence, you have to observe closely to find that.

Even A Small Vibration Can Spell Trouble!
Remember always that yellow jackets are easily agitated. Even a small vibration caused by your footsteps near the nest can provoke them. Even simple acts like pruning shrubs, mowing lawns or watering plants can agitate them and make them attack you as a group of swarming aggressive wasps. Even though all the wasps try to defend their nest, yellow jackets are the only group of wasps that defend their territory with extreme aggressiveness. If you are allergic to the venom injected by the sting, then multiple stings can turn to be fatal unless immediate medical attention is not given.

How To Distinguish Them?
You can easily distinguish a yellow jacket from a bee if you look at it closely. Yellow jackets have thinner waists while bees have thick waists. When they rest at a place, the yellow jackets tend to fold the wings in a lengthwise manner.

How Do The Yellow Jacket Nest Look?
The yellow jackets build their nest underground in the shape of a soccer ball. The yellow jackets nurture their young ones inside the nest. The young ones are fed an insect protein paste. Adults will feed on the nectar of flowers. Yellow jackets are social wasps belonging to the Vespula group of species. The yellow jacket nest will contain several thousands of yellow jacket workers in the form of a colony during a single season.

Identifying The Nests
As mentioned earlier, you can identify the location of a nest by closely observing the yellow jackets you see buzzing around in your area. Try to look for them during sunny day times. You can observe the worker yellow jackets entering and exiting the holes. If there are more than two holes, try marking all the holes you see. In areas where the ground is covered up with thick vegetation, it will be difficult to identify the exact location of the nest. In that case, you can spray the entire area with an insecticide using a sprayer. Make sure that the whole area is fully drenched with the insecticide, especially the holes that you suspect to be the entrance and exit areas. Keep an eye on the area and repeat the application if needed after about ten to fifteen days. This is the best way to kill underground yellow jacket.

Look For Other Nests Nearby
Once you succeed in finding a yellow jacket nest, don’t stop your search! There are more chances to find other nests nearby. Take extra care while looking around for other nests. There might be a colony of wasps hidden from your sight, and they can get aggressive at the slight vibration of the ground or even a small noise. Although the yellow jackets prefer secluded and dark spots to build their nests, they also build nests on tree branches, walls of the house or under the bushes.

Try To Judge The Size Of The Nest
After finding all the possible nests and their entrance holes, keep a distance from the area and try judging the size of the nests. The newer nests will be small structures with honeycomb designs. It will have much more easily visible openings. Whereas, the larger nests will have the size of a closed fist of our hand. It will have several workers inside it.

How To Get Rid Of Yellow Jacket Nest In Grounds? Read On For The Answers!

There are many effective ways to kill yellow jackets in the ground. There are many types of yellow jackets. The most common one is the Western Yellow Jacket, also called Vespula pensylvanica. Another type is called Eastern Yellow Jackets or Vespula Maculifrons. These two types are the ones that build their nests in the underground areas. A colony of yellow jackets will remain active only during a single summer season. After the summer, the queen will fly away to make a nest in another place. The workers remaining behind will naturally die off in the cold climate. Though eastern yellow jackets make nests on the ground only, sometimes they might also make nests in aerial areas. A Southern Yellow Jacket or Vespula Squamosa often build their nest in terrestrial or aerial regions.

Get Rid Of Yellow Jackets With Animals That Feed On Them!
The best answer to how to kill yellow jacket nest in the ground is to let their predators eat them. You need not take the burden to get rid of them. The animals like skunks, raccoons, badgers, and bears usually prey on yellow jackets when they are retiring in their nest at night. You can show them the way and indicate that ‘dinner is ready’ by pouring a can of honey near the entrance holes of the yellow jacket nest. The animals will get lured by the sweet and will eventually feed on the high protein food inside the nest.

• Large Sized Mammals
  Many large sized mammals feed on yellow jackets. In the US, the most common predator of the yellow jacket is the bear. A black bear often feeds on insects and a large nest full of yellow jackets will make a highly nutritious and protein-rich food for the bears. The bear won’t have to worry much about the yellow jacket stings as it has a thick outer coat which will protect them from the stings while they feed on larvae and nymphs in the nest.
• Small Sized Mammals
  Small mammals like skunks and raccoons are highly beneficial in getting rid of the yellow jackets as a whole. Skunks get their daily dose of proteins by feeding on insects, and yellow jackets are one of them. Animals like shrews, badgers, and moles also feed on yellow jackets. In Southern parts, animals like armadillos also feed on these wasps. They are equipped with sharp claws to dig into the ground and long noses to burrow inside it. Their strong armor helps them to resist the yellow jacket stings.

Other Ways To Kill Yellow Jackets In Ground
The first and foremost thing you need to remember if you are planning to kill yellow jackets and evacuate the nest on your own is to always do it at night time when the yellow jackets will be less active and drowsy. Even if they wake up, they cannot see much in the dark. Hence, you will be able to escape without getting stung so much. Another benefit is that the whole colony of yellow jackets will be inside the nest at night only. Hence, you can ensure complete eradication by killing them at night.

• Use Pyrethrum Aerosol
  Pyrethrum is very effective in killing the yellow jackets easily. First, wait till the aerosol turns dry. Now, you can start dusting the entrance holes and surrounding areas to the nest with the insecticide dust. It turns into a gas and fills inside the whole nest, thus killing all the yellow jackets inside it. Check next day if all the yellow jackets are dead. If you notice any activity, repeat the process by night.
• Use Aerosol sprays or Dust
  Whenever you step outside to kill the yellow jackets, ensure that you wear protective clothing. Wait till the night seeps in and then get a flashlight to show you the way and spot the nest easily. Now you can use the aerosol spray and spray it into the nest. You can also try using insecticide Dust. It can be applied near the entrance holes and around the nest. You can make use of a centrobulb duster for easy application. The effects can last for about four to six months and can kill the yellow jackets quickly. Repeat the application after three or four months to ensure that the newly hatched wasps also get killed.
• Use Mint Combined With Hot Water
  You can take a castile soap with mint and mix it up with water to form a soapy solution. Now, pour this solution into the yellow jacket nest by using a watering can. Try to get a can with an elongated spout. After pouring in the soapy water, you can now pour a kettle full of hot boiling water. Make sure your face, hands, and legs are away from the boiling water and its steam.
• Use Ice Cubes And Plastic Tarp
  Get three to four large sized bags filled with ice. Now pour down the ice cubes into the yellow jacket nest. Ice helps in slowing down the movement of the yellow jackets. Stuff as many ice cubes as you can into the nest. After filling the nest with ice cubes, seal the area using a plastic tarp. A thick sheet of plastic or plywood also works fine. Now, weigh down the sheet using large rocks or bricks. The tarp should be covered up with mulch or dirt.
• Use Glass Bowl
  Get a large-sized glass bowl and place it upside down to cover the yellow jacket nest. Try this method during cool early mornings when the yellow jackets are all inside the nest and less active. Keep the bowl tight so that the yellow jackets won’t be able to escape outside. They will gradually die inside the nest unable to get out.
• Use Oil Sprays
  This can be the safest way for you as oil is very effective against insects and safe for humans. You can make use of the horticulture oils too.

All You Need To Know About Treating Yellow Jacket Nest In Ground!

There are many successful ways by which you can treat the yellow jackets and get rid of them from your premises. Here are some of the useful ways you can adopt:

Use Canister Vacuum
Take a canister vacuum attached to an empty, new bag and place the opening end of the hose over the entrance hole opening of the nest. It is better to place it during early mornings. Now, wait till the sun seeps in. Turn on the canister now. The yellow jackets turn aggressive hearing the loud voice and come to attack it. Thus, they get sucked into the vacuum and will be trapped within the bag. After sucking in all the yellow jackets, you should tape the hole of the vacuum before switching it off. After taping it securely, you can switch off the device. Leave the bag in the bright sunlight for one or two days until all the yellow jackets get killed inside the bag. After two days, you can dispose off the bag.

Use Bug Zapper
If you find it difficult to locate the entrance holes to the nest, then you can use a bug zapper to get rid of the yellow jackets. Place it near the entrance area of the nest. The yellow jackets will try to attack the glowing substance and will get killed in the process.

Use Pop Bottles
This is a homemade method you can use to get rid of yellow jackets without the use of any harmful chemicals. You will need a 2-liter large bottle, one cup of apple cider vinegar, ¼ cup sugar, four cups of water and a banana peel. Pour ½ cup water into the bottle and add sugar to it. Shake the bottle till the sugar gets fully dissolved in the water. Now add apple cider vinegar and mix it well. Add peels of banana as decaying fruits help in luring yellow jackets. Now, continue adding water till the bottle is half filled.

• The Trap
  Make a ¾ inch sized hole on the top side of the bottle and place the hole close to the opening of the insect hive. If you don’t want to risk going near the nest, place the bottle in outside areas near your outside tables or BBQ areas. The yellow jackets get lured by the sugary liquid and fall into the water. They will eventually drown to death.

Use Boiling Water
It is better not to try drowning the yellow jackets using water. The yellow jackets always emerge out after the water gets dried up. Hence, a better alternative is to use boiling water instead. Heat a kettle full of water and pour the boiling water into the nest. You can even add some insecticide in the water to make it more effective.

Make Use Of Smoke!
Smoke is always commonly used to get rid of insects. Yellow jackets fear smoke as the smoke makes them go blind. Hence, you can make use of this trick with no side effects to get rid of yellow jackets.

Use Gasoline
You can try killing yellow jacket nest in ground gasoline methods too. The downside is that it contaminates the whole area, the plants and the fauna in the area. Hence, you can try it only if other methods are not effective. You have to pour the gasoline inside the nest of the yellow jackets. The gasoline fumes kill the yellow jackets easily. But, ensure that there is no flame or flammable substance near you. Ignited gasoline explodes and creates great harm to life and property. Hence, this is not a recommended method of removal as it can be too dangerous.

Use Baits
You can use baits kept to kill the yellow jackets. You can apply insecticide on a piece of meat or a sweet liquid. The yellow jackets will get lured and die by consuming the insecticide. Meat can be used during summer and spring seasons when the yellow jackets are very active and looking for protein-rich food. You can use sweets for the fall season.

Use Traps
You can make use of traps when you are unable to locate the nest of yellow jackets. Make use of lures like a piece of meat or some sweet. Ensure that you place the trap away from the place you are sitting. You can effectively use this method during picnics and BBQ parties. Meat works in early seasons while sweets work in later seasons.

Take Professional Help
If you are unable to get rid of yellow jackets by yourself using any of the methods listed above, then it is better to seek professional help. An exterminator can effectively remove even large colonies of yellow jackets. You can seek the help of professional companies who use non-toxic methods to remove wasps and insects. This will help in ensuring the safety of pets, people and animals near the place.

Points To Take Care
You can easily get rid of yellow jackets by doing the elimination process carefully and cautiously. Always treat the yellow jacket nests at night time when they are less active. Ensure that you keep the insecticide-laden baits away from places where kids or pets might take it. Further points to take care of are as follows:

• Prevent the yellow jackets from nesting on your property by filling all the burrows and holes made by animals with dirt and sand.
• Always cover the trash cans with a tight lid and apply insecticides over the exterior and interior sides of the can. You can apply insecticide around the can as well.
• You can repel away yellow jackets naturally by growing plants and herbs that repel yellow jackets. Some common examples are wormwood, thyme, citronella, spearmint, and eucalyptus.