[ptarmigan]

There's a golf ball sized wasp nest on my shed roof on the inside. I'd leave it but it would be difficult to work round.  So I was thinking of going up early, putting a jar over it, using a saw to slide under where it joins to the roof and then holding saw over top while disposing of it somewhere... 

Mad idea or will it work?

[Offwego]

sounds logical to me, careful when you relocate them though as I daresay they will bolt out of the jar then

[8doubles]

I tried the same on corrugated asbestos , when i came back up the garden my boots were still under the nest where i had leapt out of them !

 

[Salmo]

Are they ordinary nasty wasps?

There are other harmless wasps that make small nests that get no bigger than that. Pity to disturb them.

[ptarmigan]

I don't know how you tell the difference. One wasp and small nest I would leave and avoid. I just don't want to open the door in a couple of weeks and find a nest the size of a ford cortina...

[madcat]

At this stage there will just be a queen wasp and a lot of larvae in the nest.  I'm not sure if moving it will work to keep the larvae alive and for the queen to follow, but it is certainly a low risk exercise for you.  Give it another fortnight for the larvae to hatch into worker wasps and you will have a different game. So courage - and go for it now! 

PS  we have just done the same to a nest in the box outside the back door where we keep our wellies and outdoor shoes and generally muddy clutter.  The queen was using the padlock hole (we dont lock it) as the entry ..... Clever, but could have been a bit drastic, as I am Very Allergic to stings.     The queen was very p*ssed off and hung around for a couple of hours, but then disappeared, presumably to start again somewhere else.

[ptarmigan]

Cheers madicat. I'll gird my loins and do it tonight.

[jaydig]

I had the same in my shed last year.  Although I am allergic to insect bites and stings I decided to leave it alone. It didn't cause any problems, and I only saw one wasp coming any going for a while and it wasn't aggressive.  Personally, I'd leave it alone.

[Goosegirl]

Cheers madicat. I'll gird my loins and do it tonight.

I'd gird a bit more than that  and take some Raid with you as well as a blanket just in case.

[Blackpool rocket]

Personally, I'd leave it alone.

I agree, I  am a hospital case for wasp stings, but if it isn't active, it's presence will deter others from creating a nest. It will act as a deterent.

Keep an eye on it & spray if necessary.

Br

[ptarmigan]

It is active - I saw the queen going in and out yesterday.   And the flight path will make the shed unusable once there's a steady stream of wasps going in an out.  If it was outside under the eaves I'd leave it.

[hamstergbert]

.... it's presence will deter others from creating a nest. It will act as a deterent......

Got me doubts about that - three in my loft last year, two head sized a couple of feet apart and a rather larger one (ribcage of second row size) over the other side.  Didn't seem to have deterred them from pitching up in the same airspace.   

In the past had wasp cities up there alongside a previous season's deserted waspopolis so not too convinced that inactive nests act as a deterrent either.

In any case seems a bit odd to suggest avoiding possible future wasps by accepting definite present wasps.

[Blackpool rocket]

Got me doubts about that

Fair enough, there is evidence for both schools of thought.

In any case seems a bit odd to suggest avoiding possible future wasps by accepting definite present wasps.

Not odd at all, it's only the size of a golf ball.

Even me with my allergic reaction can cope with that as a potential hazzard.

I did suggest monitoring it, perhaps you missed that part.

Br

[ptarmigan]

All the information seems to point to them starting out as golf ball sized, filled with larvae and the queen, and then growing as the larvae hatch - so that you can end up with a considerable number of wasps going in and out as the summer progresses.   

So catching it now before the larvae hatch seems to be the way to go, basically nipping it in the bud.

As I say I'd be happy with that somewhere else but not with the nest and flightpath in such a bad position in the shed. 

If I could be sure it would stay there at that size and was the home of a solitary wasp that would be fine - but that doesn't seem to be how solitary wasps work - they don't seem to build a nest but have a single cell in the soil or mortar.  It's more likely that this could grow into something with the potential to have 20,000 wasps.

[Blackpool rocket]

Absolutely, kill the living eliment then, but leave the "nest" in place.....it might work as a deterent.

Br