Simple wasp trap in pear tree kills MANY wasps

I posted recently about the damage the wasps were doing to our pears, and showed how to make a simple wasp trap out of a 2 litre soft drink bottle and some fishing line. These traps were set a week ago and baited with about 4 teaspoons of jam in a pint of water. They have killed a LOT of wasps plus some flies, moths and hornets. No bees as far as I can tell.

It would have been better if I had put up more traps and earlier. Better late than never. Next year I plan to put them up EARLIER. Hope this is is of some use to others who are similarly afflicted.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• pear
• tree
• fruit
• orchard
• wasp
• trap
• hornet
• damage
• rot
• waste
• stephen
• hayes
• fruitwise
• pest
• control
• jam

[mukwah1111]

Hi Stephen Can you tell me what you used in those traps? I have a wasp or hornet nest in my composter...down near the bottom & my daughter was swarmed & stung by them when she went to add some kitchen waste to it. We can see them going in & out the vents in the lower corner of the composter. Any suggestions on a trap? what mixture did you put in those pop bottle traps? Sorry for your loss. What a waste of wonderful fruits. All the best

[stephenhayesuk]

@mukwah1111 I used jam and water. about 4 teaspoons of jam in a pint of water. There are other recipes but basically sugar and fruit. I have used fresh pressed apple juice in the past with great success.

[BJBlitzstein]

Do you try to collect the rotted fruit from under the tree? (To dispose of) Does leaving it there lead to increased possibility of problems for the tree?

[stephenhayesuk]

@BJBlitzstein You are right, ideally it should all be collected and burned, but life is MUCH too short. The biosphere takes care of it.

Best solution might be to run chickens or pigs under the trees but this is not feasible for us.

BTW as ever, I am just sharing a bit of what I do in my orchard, if anyone has anything else to share, I will always OK relevant video responses. I'm just one guy finding his way through and passing it on

love to hear from others what works (or not) for them

[MadBadVoodo]

50% oh man that sucks!! So what is it about the hornet that you like?? ★★★★★

[stephenhayesuk]

@MadBadVoodo Thanks, its not as bad as this everywhere. This particular pear tree is well away from the main orchard in a semi wild area which gives more cover for wasps. In the main pear orchard the loses are more like 5 or 10%-still bad but less bad.

SHOULD HAVE PREPPED BETTER!!!!!!

[tomagotchii]

how do you make these traps? I have a pear tree in my back yard.. last year around winter I had one branch covered entirely of bees early in the morning. i guess they were staying close together to stay warm. so before the sun could rise and warm the bees I took wasp and hornet killer spray and sprayed the bees. I stood and watched the bees fall off the branch saying to myself die bitch die!!!. wells i want to prevent how to keep bees and wasp hornets away from my pear tree. what do i need??????

[stetsonwalker]

Something that works great in these traps is to buy a cheap sugared cola type drink and use that as bait. It works great, is cheap and gives you another bottle to use!

[taono]

hi steve, it looks to me like the wasps burrow just underneath the stalk and sever the supply of nutrients from the tree to the pear,..the wasps are a real pain!,..i have a pear tree at the bottom of my garden so do you think its too late to put a trap up now?

[LETCA]

Interesting to see how many wasps were captured. Far more than I would have expected.

[mukwah1111]

@mukwah1111 Thanks very much Stephen. All the best.

[ProfKSE]

My "wasp" damage usually comes in the form of four-legged 120 pound fur-bearing beasts.

[Chisola69]

I'm really very sorry about wasps damage on your pears.Your traps are very useful,anyway.Ciao Stephen.

[sfmsrl]

I'm really very sorry about wasps damage on your pears . Your traps are very useful,anyway.Ciao,Stephen.