Yellowjacket stings are the most painful
As a budding beekeeper,
I've learned that most stinging insects aren't so bad. Honeybee
stings stop hurting in minutes, the wasps that move into our trailer in
search of ladybugs rarely sting, and bumblebees generally mind their
own business. But I have a hard spot in my heart for
yellowjackets.
Last year was the worst year ever for yellowjackets --- it seemed like
every time I mowed the yard, I got stung. This year, we only seem
to have one nest within our cultivated perimeter (and another along the
driveway). Since I've marked the locations and give them a wide
berth, stings have been relatively minor.
I've been stung
by pretty much everything out there, and I have to say that
yellowjacket stings are the most painful. All summer, I've
considering finding a way to kill the colony living between my rhubarb
and asparagus, but I can't wrap my mind around poison. Turns out
I've waited long enough that winter will soon do it for me.
Unlike honeybees where most of the colony survives the winter, only the queen
yellowjacket overwinters, starting a new colony in the
spring. Sure is nice to be able to put off one more problem until
next year....
Or explore more posts by date or by subject.
About us: Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton spent over a decade living self-sufficiently in the mountains of Virginia before moving north to start over from scratch in the foothills of Ohio. They've experimented with permaculture, no-till gardening, trailersteading, home-based microbusinesses and much more, writing about their adventures in both blogs and books.
Want to be notified when new comments are posted on this page? Click on the RSS button after you add a comment to subscribe to the comment feed, or simply check the box beside "email replies to me" while writing your comment.