Why wasp like mills

[killamplanes]

It must be the sawdust or something. But I used 1.5 cans of wasp spray today. Bet I killed 50 of them. My b-20 has a hundred places for a wasp to build a nest in. Its partly my fault because I haven't sawed much the heat of this summer. But does anyone know are wasp attracted to certain wood or the sawdust from it. Or am I just this unlucky..

[YellowHammer]

Wasps like mills, but they really love my fence latches and bottoms of tubular gates.  This year, they are everywhere, and mean. 

I've been using the new foaming carpenter bee spray, works good.

[kelLOGg]

I've got European hornets flying around my new sawdust. In general, when I weld pipes or tubes that are to be used outside I usually close the ends off to be uninviting to wasps.

[Chuck White]

We don't seem to have a lot of wasps in this area, but whenever I'm sawing Ash there always seems to be quite a few honey bees working the sawdust pile!

[WV Sawmiller]

We don't seem to have a lot of wasps in this area, but whenever I'm sawing Ash there always seems to be quite a few honey bees working the sawdust pile!

Chuck,

   I'd bet ash has a lot of sugar in it. I have always said the smell reminds me of old honey (like when we used to find an old bee tree in the woods). I have been sawing a good bit of it lately and like the smell.

   So far this year I have sawed often enough the wasps have not tried to build. They give me fits in my unused bee shed about 30' away. I forget and open the door and get stung often. Mostly big red and the little yellow guinea wasps and sometimes even white faced hornets building in there. I need to go check and spray it now that I think of it.

[DMcCoy]

Got a big nasty yellow jacket nest in an outdoor greenhouse heater.  My usual WD-40 treatment seemed to fail and lighting their nest on fire didn't get the message across because they rebuilt on the ruins.  So I brought out my gas powered pressure washer,  Never done that before but thought it was worth a try.  By the time I blew it through 1/2" hardware cloth there wasn't much picture worthy in the left overs.
Knocked several bees flying toward me out of the air, some it killed outright others were stunned and sitting on the ground for a couple of min before coming back for more.
I didn't use chemicals so is this considered a 'green' method?

[bags]

You guys have all the fun--- we don't have wasps up here at 9200'.

[WV Sawmiller]

You guys have all the fun--- we don't have wasps up here at 9200'.

Bags,

   Maybe not but those of us down at lower elevations have something you are lacking -oxygen :D :D :D :D.

     We vacationed in Ecuador in December 2008 and spent a couple nights in Quito the capital, and I'd wake up gasping for breath. Same thing in Glacier Nat'l Park 2 years ago up on the continental divide. I thought I was having a heart attack till a young fellow with me reminded me about the thin air.

    No matter where we live and visit we will find good and bad features about where we live. Its true all over the world.

[killamplanes]

well today there wasn't but a couple wasp that come back to find there buddys were buried in bur oak sawdust.  theres just so many places on my mill for a nest to be built.

[highlandsaw]

I'm a beekeeper and have also noticed honeybees on my sawdust while milling. And not just ash but many different woods. I am convinced they think it is pollen. They seem to be more interested at those times of the year when there is no pollen available.

What I should do is catch some of them when they are on the sawdust and see if they are packing the sawdust like pollen.

[caveman]

We always get a lot of wasps during the hotter months.  They get in our sawmill shed lights, purlins and find all kinds of ambush spots to take up residence in the mill. We get both the big "paper wasps" and the little ones with surly attitudes, "Guinea wasps".   The main time I see honey bees around the mill is when we are end coating some of our slabs with melted bees' wax. We have been spraying wasps with a product called Sniper and it does a good job of killing them without having to get real close to.  Dawn dish soap mixed with water will also deal misery to wasps.

With all of the rain we have been having, the ground is saturated and the fire ants have come out of the ground.  Yesterday I had the opportunity experience several stings on both feet on numerous occasions while working in the yard and pasture.  Of course I was wearing my hot weather work boots (sandals).  For those of you who do not have fire ants, be thankful.  They do not hurt all that bad but they seem to all sting at the same time and they are quite an annoyance.

[Sixacresand]

I had been avoiding a big nest in my mill cabinet.  Soon I will have to spray them when I need something.  I think wasp just like a dry place. 

[Brucer]

Yellow jackets, hornets, and many wasps make their nests from paper, which they manufacture from saliva and ... wait for it ... wood. Hmm. Could there be a connection ???.

[4x4American]

Yellow jackets, hornets, and many wasps make their nests from paper, which they manufacture from saliva and ... wait for it ... wood. Hmm. Could there be a connection ???.

Yea they use engineered trusses though.  They're just lazy nowadays.  Back in my
day they timber framed em.

[DMcCoy]

Yellow jackets, hornets, and many wasps make their nests from paper, which they manufacture from saliva and ... wait for it ... wood. Hmm. Could there be a connection ???.

I think that is how they make OSB and LP siding,  bee spit and wood fibers.   ;D

[taylorsmissbeehaven]

Tis the season! I knocked down a big nest in the chicken coop Sunday. Had been putting it off a while and boy did it grow. Smacked it with a broom and ran like heck!! :D Came back a bit later and cleaned up the mess.
Highland, I am with you. I too keep honeybees and find that when I put out sawdust in the early spring they are all over it. May get some water from it too. Mine have been vacationing in the mountains for the last 6 weeks making sourwood honey. That stuff sure is good. Brian