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#1
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
(One of the downsides of living alone- when something actually works for
a change, there is nobody to tell about it.) Anyway, there have been regular threads on here, from me and others, on how to kill the nests of the ground-dwelling bees/wasps/whatever, that do a passable imitation of a fountain if you accidentally drive the mower over them. I had one in my front yard that I had been mowing around for over a month, edging the mower as close to it as I dared, and not taking my eyes off it. Repeated mega-doses of Sevin and Raid long-distance spray cans did NOTHING. So last night, I combined bits of several proposed cures, and came up with something painless that worked for me. After dark, when the bees(or whatever) were all tucked in for the night, I went out a laid an old screen from a storm window over the hole, and weighted it down with some angle iron I had laying around, to make sure it cut off all escape routes through the (by now tall) grass blades. I then poured about 2 glugs from a jug of Simple Green on the screen (although about any soap would work, I suppose). and directed the hose at the center of the screen for about five minutes. Got home from work today, stared through the screen awhile, saw no movement. Took the angle iron and screen off, prepared to run like hell. Nothing. The Flood of soapy water did the trick. Supposedly the soap makes them non-waterproof? Went out back and got some dirt from a pile some possum had kindly made on the slab around my shed, and carried a scoop shovel full back up front, filled in the hole, and stomped it down. I suppose I ought to throw some grass seed on it, if it isn't too late. But anyway, that window screen and angle iron will be going in the 'save' pile, instead of the next load for Habitat. I'm sure I'll get more stinging things moving in next year. Standard disclaimer- I harbor no ill will toward bees, and if they had moved 40 feet in any direction, I would have had no quarrel with them. I even weeded the garden last month with them flying around inches from my hands, and they didn't get upset.They do good work, etc. But they just freak out when running lawnmowers are within X number of feet. The fussy neighbors would shoot me if I let the yard grow tall, and I don't get enjoy getting stung, so sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Why do the bees always insist in using the gopher holes in the grass, instead of the ones actually in the garden or under the hedges? Hope this helps somebody out there. -- aem sends... |
#2
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
clipped
Standard disclaimer- I harbor no ill will toward bees, and if they had moved 40 feet in any direction, I would have had no quarrel with them. I even weeded the garden last month with them flying around inches from my hands, and they didn't get upset.They do good work, etc. But they just freak out when running lawnmowers are within X number of feet. The fussy neighbors would shoot me if I let the yard grow tall, and I don't get enjoy getting stung, so sometimes ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Why do the bees always insist in using the gopher holes in the grass, instead of the ones actually in the garden or under the hedges? Hope this helps somebody out there. The victims were probably hornets, which are definitely hazardous to humans....regularly read about mass attacks in Florida, usually going after mowers. When we were trying to identify lawn pests (mole crickets) in our Florida lawn, one test was to pour a couple of gallons of water with a little detergent onto the infested area....very interesting results. The detergent makes water penetrate into the bug's breathing apparatus and drown them because the surface tension (or whatever) is changed. After a minute or two, all the critters come to the surface struggling, including earthworms. In the past few months, I've begun to see bees again, but they are probably Africanized, which now infest much of Florida. I use Dawn/water to spray my lemon tree when aphids get too numerous. Seems to work. |
#3
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
Anyway, there have been regular threads on here, from me and others, on
how to kill the nests of the ground-dwelling bees/wasps/whatever, that do a passable imitation of a fountain if you accidentally drive the mower over them. I had one in my front yard that I had been mowing Doesn't your county's government have a special unit for killing pests and dangerous insects? Why do it yourself? -- @~@ Might, Courage, Vision, SINCERITY. / v \ Simplicity is Beauty! May the Force and Farce be with you! /( _ )\ (x86_64 Ubuntu 9.10) Linux 2.6.35.5 ^ ^ 20:45:01 up 2 days 10:13 1 user load average: 0.15 0.04 0.01 不借貸! 不詐騙! 不援交! 不打交! 不打劫! 不自殺! 請考慮綜援 (CSSA): http://www.swd.gov.hk/tc/index/site_...sub_addressesa |
#4
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
On 9/25/2010 8:45 AM, Man-wai Chang wrote:
Anyway, there have been regular threads on here, from me and others, on how to kill the nests of the ground-dwelling bees/wasps/whatever, that do a passable imitation of a fountain if you accidentally drive the mower over them. I had one in my front yard that I had been mowing Doesn't your county's government have a special unit for killing pests and dangerous insects? Why do it yourself? Why would they have that? Other than a couple of guys that go after stray livestock/pet -killing dogs and such, they have nothing. If your area provides that level of service, I'd hate to see the taxes you have to pay. -- aem sends... |
#5
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
Man-wai Chang wrote the following:
Anyway, there have been regular threads on here, from me and others, on how to kill the nests of the ground-dwelling bees/wasps/whatever, that do a passable imitation of a fountain if you accidentally drive the mower over them. I had one in my front yard that I had been mowing Doesn't your county's government have a special unit for killing pests and dangerous insects? Why do it yourself? Yes it does, but that usually involves tanks, bombs, cruise missiles, and thousands of troops running all over the lawn. -- Bill In Hamptonburgh, NY In the original Orange County. Est. 1683 To email, remove the double zeroes after @ |
#6
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
aemeijers wrote:
On 9/25/2010 8:45 AM, Man-wai Chang wrote: Anyway, there have been regular threads on here, from me and others, on how to kill the nests of the ground-dwelling bees/wasps/whatever, that do a passable imitation of a fountain if you accidentally drive the mower over them. I had one in my front yard that I had been mowing Doesn't your county's government have a special unit for killing pests and dangerous insects? Why do it yourself? Why would they have that? Other than a couple of guys that go after stray livestock/pet -killing dogs and such, they have nothing. If your area provides that level of service, I'd hate to see the taxes you have to pay. If they have psychological counseling for dogs, they probably have pest remediation - the "catch and release" method is quite popular. |
#7
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
Catch and release. Works on Mexicans, too.
-- Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus www.lds.org .. "HeyBub" wrote in message m... Why would they have that? Other than a couple of guys that go after stray livestock/pet -killing dogs and such, they have nothing. If your area provides that level of service, I'd hate to see the taxes you have to pay. If they have psychological counseling for dogs, they probably have pest remediation - the "catch and release" method is quite popular. |
#8
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How to kill a 'Bee Fountain'
On Sep 25, 7:45*am, Man-wai Chang wrote:
Anyway, there have been regular threads on here, from me and others, on how to kill the nests of the ground-dwelling bees/wasps/whatever, that do a passable imitation of a fountain if you accidentally drive the mower over them. I had one in my front yard that I had been mowing Doesn't your county's government have a special unit for killing pests and dangerous insects? Why do it yourself? Assuming your post was a sincere response, you were probably referring to the County Extension Service. They will give you advice on identifying and killing pests, but they do not do the work. That is up to you. |
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