Hornets vs Hamburgers: Keep Your 4th of July Wasp-Free
If you’re planning on throwing an outdoor Fourth of July celebration, you might as well add wasps to your guest list now, because chances are that they’ll be there whether they were invited or not. It’s not that wasps are particularly patriotic; they’re notorious for attending Independence Day parties because it’s their favorite time of year and you’re serving all of their favorite foods.
Can’t Beat the Heat
Yellow jackets are common summer pests, often seen nesting in areas with high levels of direct sunlight. It’s no wonder why we more often see them in the dog days of summer, and then abruptly see their populations drop during the cooler fall months, which is when most of them die off for the season.
Where’s the Beef?
Most people are aware that wasps love sugary foods -- like the watermelon, relish and cookies you’ll often find on an Independence Day buffet. However, while we don’t often associate wasps with meat, they have just as much an appetite for your burgers as they do the condiments that they’re served with.
Rescind Wasps’ Invitation to the Cookout
The best way to keep wasps and other pests away from your cookout is to block off their access to the food that’s drawing them there. Keep food covered with airtight containers when it’s not being served, and run fans near the dining area -- it’ll keep your guests cool and make the airspace too windy for flying pests like wasps and mosquitoes.
Serve drinks in lidded cups, where the only access to the liquid is through the straw. And maybe the most important of all: Keep trash bins covered or otherwise sealed, so insects don’t have a self-serve smorgasbord of their own to feast upon.
Set Yourself Up for Success
If you really want to tackle the hornet problem at your cookout, prevention starts long before the party does. In addition to getting all the lidded cups, covered trash cans and sealable food containers in order, check the area for nests a few days before the party so that you have time to effectively remove them before the invited guests arrive.
Consider bringing in an expert, like a pest control professional from JP Pest Services. We can inspect the area for current nests that are out of your sight and reach, and even pre-treat to help prevent any future colonies from establishing a home on your property.
JP Pest Control Services offers several preventative options that can help keep pests off your property all year long, including ants, mice, spiders, mosquitoes and ticks.
Consider us your own personal pest bouncers. Contact us today to find out more about how to protect your property from wasps and other pests.
