Wasps may be ecological powerhouses, but they are not without their downsides—especially when they get a little too comfortable around humans or in sensitive ecosystems. They are capable of stinging repeatedly, and their stings can be quite painful.
For individuals with allergies, these stings may cause serious reactions, including life-threatening anaphylaxis. Each year in the UK, thousands of people require emergency medical treatment due to wasp stings. A gardening expert has suggested using one trick to keep the wasps away from the garden, and it’s something you already have at home. Mousy Brown’s House claimed that “this simple homemade wasp trap can capture the scout wasps as they emerge in the warm sunshine and their demise leads to far fewer visitations later in the season.”
According to the expert, using a jam to trick the wasps “lessens the number of wasps” in summer each year.
She explained: “The theory is that the wasp is attracted by the sweet smell and crawls into the hole, which is just large enough.
“This does seem to be effective at lessening the number of wasps we see later in the summer. If we do eat outside, I will often make a fresh trap and fill it with orange juice to catch any wasps that arrive while we are outside. I do recommend that you empty them wearing gloves as the smell can be somewhat disgusting at the end of the season.”
Begin with a clean glass jam jar and place roughly one tablespoon of old jam at the bottom (even mouldy bits work well for this).
Add about an inch of very hot water to the jar, then stir thoroughly to combine with the jam.
Allow the mixture to cool completely.
Cover the jar tightly with a piece of aluminium foil and secure it in place using an elastic band.
Carefully use a sharp pencil to poke a single hole in the centre of the foil.
Make sure not to widen the hole, and try to remove the pencil cleanly without tearing the opening.
When it has had enough of the jam it tries to get out but the foil that is sticking down around the hole makes it impossible for it to get out.