Wasps vs Bees – How to Identify Them Before Arranging Pest Control in Westbere
Where there is a lot of ground, several outbuildings and mature planting, a methodical weekly walk-round is the best way to spot insect activity early and identify it correctly.
More places to hide
A large garden, smallholding, yard or business site simply has more places for a nest to hide. There are barns, stores, sheds, hedges, old trees, stacks of timber and long grass, and nobody can keep an eye on all of it all the time. A nest can build for weeks before anyone notices.
If you look after a property in Westbere with plenty of space, a regular and methodical check is more useful than a worried glance when something goes wrong.
Large properties often have multiple people responsible for different areas, such as a farm hand, a caretaker, a tenant and the owner. Agree in advance who takes the report and who books the work, so that a nest does not get noticed by everyone and reported by nobody.
Do not be tempted to rely on a single big inspection in the spring. Nests grow, and a clear site in May can have a busy entrance in July. Think of the walk-round as a short routine rather than a project, taking ten or fifteen minutes each time.
Setting up a weekly walk-round
Pick the same day each week through the warm months and follow the same route.
- Start at the buildings. Check eaves, roof edges, door frames and the gaps around pipes.
- Move to the outbuildings, looking at roofs, walls and timber.
- Check hedges and trees from a distance, looking for traffic rather than going in.
- Check banks, ditches and bare ground for small holes.
- Note anything unusual and the time.
- Stay back from anything that looks like an active entrance.
A phone with a note-taking app or camera is all you need.
Make use of simple tools: a notebook, a pair of binoculars and a phone with a good zoom. Binoculars are especially useful on a large site because they let you check a roof edge or tree from a comfortable distance and make smooth, crisp insects easy to tell from fuzzy ones.
Telling bees from wasps in the field
On a large property you will see plenty of both. Bees work flowering plants, hedges in bloom and clover. Wasps hover around food areas, bins, fruit and the ends of buildings. Smooth, crisp, narrow-waisted insects entering a gap are a different matter from fuzzy ones feeding on a flower.
Honeybees and bumblebees are valuable pollinators, so a local beekeeper or the relevant bee organisation is who to ask. Wasp Exterminator Kent treats wasps and nothing else, and we will tell you plainly if it sounds like bees.
Bumblebee nests in banks and old stacks are common on land like this. They are quiet and best left alone, but they sometimes cause alarm because of the sizeable insects flying about.
Stacks of timber, pallets, old tyres and piles of stone offer plenty of sheltered gaps. Check them at the edge, without moving anything. Moving a pallet to find out what is behind it is a classic way to disturb an unseen nest.
Hedgerows deserve special care, particularly old thick hedges and hollow trees. Hedge cutting is a well-known cause of stings, so inspect the hedge from a distance before using a trimmer, and stop work at once if insects start to emerge.
Reporting what you find
For a large property, a clear report is vital. Describe where the activity is in terms that someone can find, such as "the north gable of the barn" or "the third post along the fence", and include a photograph from a safe place. If several people use the site, make sure everyone knows which areas are off limits.
Wasps start building nests from late April, depending on the weather, in gaps in eaves and walls, chimneys, trees, bushes or holes in the ground. The colony keeps growing through the summer and peaks in August, when it can hold from 2,000 to 10,000 or more wasps.
A site map is useful if you manage a large area. Mark the position of any suspected nest, the routes people use and the places where animals are kept. A rough sketch on paper is quite enough, and we can use it to plan our approach and keep everyone safe.
Give a brief to anyone who works on the site, even if they only visit occasionally. A two-line instruction such as "do not go near the yellow cone, there may be wasps" is simple, easy to remember and prevents accidents.
Staff, visitors and animals
If people or livestock use the land, think about where they walk. Keep well away from a live nest, because the colony can swarm and sting if it feels threatened. Close or fence off the area if you can do so from a distance, and tell everyone concerned, including contractors, delivery drivers and any visitors. Keep dogs on leads near the area.
Where machinery operates, such as tractors, mowers and strimmers, brief the operators about any suspected activity. Vibration and noise can set off a colony, and a driver who unknowingly mows over a ground nest may be in real trouble within seconds.
Booking
We work for domestic and commercial customers, and a site with several buildings is no problem.
To arrange a visit, ring Wasp Exterminator Kent on 01622 410 019 or leave your details on the contact page. A wasp nest treatment is priced at a fixed £120 and there is no call-out charge, with one visit guaranteed. A second nest on the same property costs £60 more.
Wasp Exterminator Kent is available every day of the week, for homes and commercial premises, with same-day service. Evening and weekend appointments are available, and the technicians are fully insured and qualified.
If anyone in the household is allergic to wasp stings, tell us when booking and we can prioritise the visit. If there is more than one nest, tell us when you book.
If your property is used for events, camping or holiday lets, let guests know which areas to avoid and why. A short, friendly notice keeps everyone safe and shows you have things in hand.
Wasps on your property in Westbere?
Fixed price £120 per nest, no call-out charge, same-day service available.