Build wasp trap yourself - the best attractants

• Attractants and mixtures
  • Hints and tips
• Wasp trap made of PET bottle
  • Benefit of a wasp trap
• Friendly home remedies as wasp traps
• Animal friendly defense
• Proper behavior

How to optimally encounter "intrusive" wasps can be found in this guide. We will inform you about suitable attractants and explain step by step how to build a wasp trap with attractive filling yourself. In addition, we describe good alternatives that are more animal friendly and often more effective.

Of the eight species of wasps that occur here, only two can be really annoying or even dangerous: the German wasp and the common wasp. Both genera nest in large states in the roof beams or underground. Most of their "houses" are so hidden that they are only discovered when the insects have become a plague. In contrast, the usually smaller and spherical nests of other, peaceful wasps in hedges, bushes or under trusses much easier and faster. Many hobby gardeners destroy these nests as a supposed precaution - for no reason. This is another reason why the actually harmless and protected species are endangered.

That means: Only act against wasps that directly disturb you. Below you will find out:

• the best attractants for the filling
• how to build a wasp trap
• which animal-friendly alternatives are there
• How you behave properly against wasps
• why wasps should not be killed

Attractants and mixtures

If you want to build a wasp trap, the main question is what are the best attractants to reliably attract wasps. The filling and its components are in fact the nuts and bolts of the home-made product. We present you with different recipes that you can try.

Mix # 1	Mix # 5
- 1 ½ cups of water - 6 tbsp sugar	- ½ cup orange or apple juice - ½ cup of water - ½ cup vinegar - 3 tbsp sugar
Mix # 2	Mix # 6
- 1 ½ cups of orange or apple juice - 3 tbsp sugar	- ½ cup of beer - ½ cup of water - ½ cup vinegar - 3 tbsp sugar
Mix # 3	Mix # 7
- ¾ cups of orange or apple juice - ¾ cups of water - 3 tbsp sugar	- ½ cup orange or apple juice - ½ cup of beer - ½ cup vinegar - 3 tbsp sugar
Mix # 4
- ¾ cups of orange or apple juice - ¾ cups of beer - 3 tbsp sugar

Hints and tips

Like humans, weps also love sweet foods and drinks. Therefore, sugar water is well suited to catch the insects. Sometimes, however, the animals are so spoiled that they can not fall for the simplest and most cost-effective filling. Then you can manage with different fruit juices or beer. Both drinks are good attractants: they bring along extra sugar and also smell very strong.

Tips for filling:

• In several recipes you will find vinegar. It has a dual function: vinegar is one of the attractants of wasps. With regard to bees and bumblebees, on the other hand, it acts as a deterrent. In fact, the latter two do not like the intense smell of vinegar at all and therefore stay away from it.
• In addition to the vinegar, add a dash of dishwashing detergent to the mixture, which changes its surface tension. As a result, the wasps have less grip, go under more easily and drown faster in the filling.

Wasp trap made of PET bottle

The simplest and most cost-effective way to build a wasp trap is to prepare an old PET bottle.

You need this:

• empty PET bottle (without lid)
• suitable filling (see above)
• scissors
• duct tape

Manual:

Step 1: Cut off the top third of the PET bottle.

Tip: Do not throw away the cut piece, you will need it later.

Step 2: Fill the bottom third of the plastic bottle with the bait mixture.

Step 3: Place the cut end (see step 1) mirrored in the bottle, like a funnel.

Step 4: Tape the funnel to the bottle with tape.

Functionality:

The tapered entrance makes it easy for wasps to get inside the filling. Conversely, they have problems getting out of the bottle.

Line-up:

Do not place your wasp trap directly on the dining table, but a few meters away. Make sure that your pets do not have access to the bait. Not that another misfortune is happening and the cats or dogs are taking the inedible "drink".

Tip: Conveniently, the trap can be easily cleaned and reused. It is therefore at least an environmentally friendly method of wasp control in the home garden.

Benefit of a wasp trap

In the first instance, the self-made wasp trap with the tempting filling naturally only brings benefits: It distracts the (supposedly) intrusive insects from the good gifts on the dining table and destroys them.

BUT: Wasp traps also attract wasps from the surrounding area, which have so far expressed no interest in populating your garden. In other words, set up a wasp trap, you should not be surprised, if suddenly whole flocks appear in your garden. Apart from the enticing scent of the mixture in the trap, another aspect contributes to the appearance of more wasps: the dying insect emits special pheromones. These in turn signal an alarm and virtually call the relatives to the rescue.

Who lures the wasps, often only amplifies the problem instead of really fixing it. Thus, the use of a wasp trap is always at your own risk.

Friendly home remedies as wasp traps

Fortunately, you are not necessarily dependent on the wasp trap in the narrower sense. There are some good alternatives that will give you the peace you want and keep the insects alive. With various home remedies, you succeed in chasing the black and yellow creatures out of their green oasis. Just take advantage of the fact that wasps are extremely odor-sensitive. Here are some tips for driving away the insects:

Home remedies # 1: Frankincense
Add incense in the form of an essential oil in a small aroma lamp. Place the decorative element in the garden and light it if necessary (ie when wasps emerge).

Home remedies # 2: Basil
Grow a basil plant on your balcony or on your patio. The smell of fresh herbs does not get the insect at all.

Home remedies # 3: Coffee powder
Place a bowl of coffee powder near your outdoor dining table. The roasty aromas of home remedies are not exactly the favorite scents of wasps.

You can also make your garden bird friendly to keep wasps away: Mount a bird feeder and feed the wild birds that fly into your green zone with matching birdseed. If you succeed in getting many birds to live in your garden every now and then, fewer wasps will automatically come. Why "> Pet Friendly Defense

Both the Germans and the common wasps are very adaptable insects. From this property you can benefit: Do a little experiment - with the necessary consequence you bring the animals to avoid your dining table or even your garden in the future.

Option # 1: Food alternative

Offer the wasps a suitable food alternative to the delicacies on your dining table. Among other things:

a) overripe fruit
b) Bowl of sugar water
c) raw meat
d) salmon

It is important that you always position the selected attractants in the same place. Pick a spot that is some distance from the dining table, but within the wasp's flight path. How to determine the flight route of the animals ">

Tip: Before you become active, you can also try to make a wasp bug yourself. To do this, take an old, brown (important!) Paper bag and crumple it neatly. Then put the bag over a wide-shaped 1-liter bottle or a similar sized container. With luck, the cheap trick works.

Option # 3: Wasp spray

Get a poison-free wasp spray with essential oils and apply it generously to your garden furniture. The smell has a deterrent effect on the insects and keeps them away reliably.

Option # 4: Fire bowls

Put fragrant fire bowls around the dining area. The elements are very decorative and at the same time ensure a wasp-free zone. The smoke does not like flying insects.

Note: You also need to be patient with the last two methods. It may take a few days for the wasps to understand what's going on. But gradually they learn not to come to you anymore, but to try their luck in other gardens.

Proper behavior

In certain situations, such as holidays, it is not always possible to make arrangements such as those described so far. Therefore, we would like to provide you with some general information that should help you to behave properly in relation to wasps.

Sometimes it would be really desirable to be able to talk directly to animals. Because body language is often misinterpreted - as with wasps. The behavior of flying insects seems to us intrusive, aggressive and downright provocative. Basically, however, the opposite is the case: Wasps are actually shy, even fearful. The wild-handling human fingers make her nervous and make her dodge. At the same time, however, the wasps are always attracted to the seductive scents.

What you should heed:

a) Do not fret with your hands and arms. As a result, the wasps feel attacked and defend themselves - with their sting. Bear in mind that a wasp, unlike a bee, does not die from a sting and can therefore stab several times. This is because the wasp sting has a different anatomy.

b) Do not blow the wasps. For the animals, the CO2 of our breath acts as an alarm and can animate them to sting. Just behave calmly, then you are commonly not bothered directly.

c) Always cover glasses with sweet or alcoholic drinks if you are not drinking from them, and do not leave food standing (too long). Means on the terrace of the restaurant: Better first eat and then talk extensively. ????

d) Avoid sweet-smelling deodorants, creams, perfumes and hair sprays. The corresponding products can also be perceived by the wasps as attractants.

e) Wear mostly dark clothes. Interestingly, wasps fly on bright, flowery colors.

f) Do not walk barefoot through meadows to avoid accidently stepping on a wasp.

Therefore, wasps should not be targetedly killed

Wasps are among the most important beneficial organisms in the garden. They eat, among other things, the larvae of beetles and flies, which can threaten your plants. In addition, the Germans and the common wasps in particular consume carrion, which is why these two species are considered health policemen among the insects. For all these reasons, you should generally avoid deliberate killing of wasps and instead of choosing a fatal wasp trap, choose one of the many animal-friendly and often even more effective alternatives. Incidentally, this also applies to allergy sufferers.