Last year i had wasps in my compost bin, will they still be there or is it safe now to use.?

Question

I couldn't turn my compost last year because of them, will they be dead now or will they still be alive in there, If they are gone will they come back.

Answer 1

It appears they die off in the winter with only the queen surviving....Open the link to find out if and when they will return...........


http://users.bestweb.net/~habitat/wasps%20and%20Hornets.htm
As with most "social" wasps, a Paper wasp colony's workers die off during the fall season. Only the queen survives the winter. She sleeps during the winter months tucked away in a protected area, such as the walls of your home, the attic or even in crawl spaces. As the temperatures slowly warm, the queen awakens and moves toward light. Unfortunately, this could be light in the home.

Link Below has all of the websites.
http://search.yahoo.com/search?search=wasp+habitat&ei=UTF-8&fr=ks-ques&ico-yahoo-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch&ico-wikipedia-search-value=http%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FSpecial%3ASearch&p=wasp+habitat

Answer 2

Well usually if wasps find a place that they like they won't move from that area. So chances are that they will return to that nest or build a new one very close by now that the weather is getting warmer.

Your best bet is to spray the compost bin with Raid or any other wasp killing chemical. And it would be a good idea if as you do this you wore multiple layers of long sleeved clothes and pants, so that if there are wasps in there they can't sting you. Just be sure to tape down the openings at the wrists and the ankles so they can't get in their either. And of course where gloves and a veil of some kind.

Answer 3

There's every chance the wasps will have gone now, plus they will have left their 'paper' nest. A new swarm maybe started later this year, so the best policy will be to spray wasp killer powder into the compost bin now.

Answer 4

you are quite safe,wasps only use a nest for one season(uk).If you are worried puff some bendiocarb powder in the entrance(found in ant powder). They will not come back,unless a new nest is made in close proximity. I deal with these insects every year on a pro basis,i also keep bees.Wasps are a benificial garden insect,although they sting,they collect thousands of other insect pests to feed to their young grubs. If you are lucky you may find the nest intact,take some time to look at its construction & the efforts involved in its making

Answer 5

Wasps do not return to the same nest year after year, however they may be in the area. Now is the time to look for new nests ( depending on your location ), and destroy them before larvae hatch, and add to size of nest. Good Luck...