Grapevines and Yellow jackets - Ask Extension
Hello,I came out to find that yellow jackets have taken over my grapevine and it appears that they ate several clusters of grapes leaving only what wa...
Knowledgebase
Grapevines and Yellow jackets #477926
Asked August 13, 2018, 4:23 PM EDT
Hello,
I came out to find that yellow jackets have taken over my grapevine and it appears that they ate several clusters of grapes leaving only what was holding the clusters on. How do I get rid of them and will they go after my other berries?
Kent County Michigan
Expert Response
Hello,
Unfortunately, I can't offer much more information on this topic than by googling "controlling yellowjackets on grape vines". Keeping wasps off ripening fruit is a difficult task. Traps appear to offer the best hope. I asked our small fruit entomologist about this, his reply follows.
"We do have a wasp control project using mass
trapping in vineyards, but we don't have harvest data yet. So we can't say much
except that we are trapping wasps using apple juice and apple slices in
the "Victor" yellow jacket jar trap. e have been hanging a kill strip in each
trap, and the bait needs to be changed every 2-3 weeks. We are using 10 to 15
traps per acre, but more is probably better. I suggest that when the grapes
begin to ripen, hang the traps 10 to 20 feet away from the vines to keep the
wasps away from the fruit.
I would also add that starting early in the
season to capture founding queens is likely to be a crucial part of late season
control. But again we need to wait on data from the harvest period to be sure.
The yellow jacket bag traps from Rescue are available at home improvement stores, and that may be an option. If they are labeled for Eastern or Western yellowjackets, get both because they do catch different species."
Hope this helps,Howard
