At least that is what it looks like. It's huge........about a foot long. I'm not sure what to do with it. Should I be happy it's there or should I tear it down or what? Also, how can you tell the difference between a beehive and a wasp hive? I want to do the right thing here. I know the honeybee population has died off quite a bit this year according to news reports.
Anyone keep bees? I posted this in the beekeeping forum as well.
Thanks,
Brenda
I found a beehive in my apple tree
If it's gray and on the outside of the tree it's wasps. Honey bees build hives in cavities. Honeybees are also kind of hairy.
Yellow jackets and wasps and hornets (and the dozen other names they go by) build either in the ground (yellow jackets) or up high in a papery nest that can look like a gray sponge with holes in it or kind of like gray paper cotton candy. The big paper wasp nests will die with the freezing weather and they don't come back to it again. People actually sell the nests on ebay and in antique shops. They creep me out. I always think there may be just one wasp left waiting for me to turn my back.
Love my honey bees, hate wasps!
The best way to get rid of wasps nest is with the foam Raid stuff. It shoots 20 feet and drops them like rocks. A neighbor set one on fire once to get rid of it. It wasn't empty. It was ugly. A wet hornet may get mad, but that is nothing compaired to one with it's fanny on fire.
THanks so much for your response. I'm guessing my hive is a wasp nest and not honey bee hive since it is not in a cavity of the tree but out on a branch. I am impressed with what it must have taken to build something that huge! Maybe I should just leave it alone till some time in the winter when I know nobody is living in there. I'll just take some tree pruners and cut that branch off and pitch the hive in the woods. I don't think I'd want to sell it on Ebay. ha ha ha..........but if anyone is into collecting them and wants to come and get it feel free.
Brenda
Could be a hornets nest to. You don't want to destroy it until the evening, thats when they are all inside. If you do it during the day you won't get rid of them all.
Loon let me know when you are going to do it so I can stay home wait till around January or till we get a good hard freeze or you won't be happy LOL
Gloria
Wow Loon!!! That sounds massive we had a mud wasp nest in the peak of our house well its still there but they are no renters now. We sprayed it with wasp killer in the evening like Pepsi said. It really does work. Im always amazed at the size of them they must be very heavy. we have a small pond and a couple of bird baths I was wondering were all of the bees were going with the water they were getting from the pond. I followed them to the front of the house and was amazed!!!! When I looked up..... Hum wonder if any one would bid on that???? Have a great weekend, Ronna
I have some pictures of my hive. I am pretty impressed with it. When I went to take the pictures one of the insects flew out. It was black and yellow. I think they're hornets but not too sure.
Noice how the hive was made to grow right into that apple. It's like they have their own built in dining room on the inside of the hive.
Another pic of the back of the hive
Here is a little history on the bald-faced hornet which is what built my nest here.
Bald-faced Hornet Nest
(The following is an article from Down the Garden Path (Issue 86, September 19, 1995), concerning Baldfaced Hornets.)
Bald-faced Hornets -- A menace to society!
Corey Gerber, Insect Diagnostician
Bald-faced hornets, Vespula maculata, are rather large wasps measuring 5/8 to 3/4 inches in length, and are very well known for their painful stings. Also, they have an intricate black and white pattern on their face, thorax, and abdomen. Adults can be found along meadows, forest edges, and around our homes. Diets of the adults consist of nectar, fruit juices, and even small insects.
Overwintered mated females will emerge in the spring and begin to build nests. Baldfaced hornet nests are large, grayish, pear-shaped paper nests. The thick paper material will enclose two or four horizontally arranged combs. These nests are typically suspended in trees, shrubs, or along the side of buildings.
After a female builds a nest, she will lay eggs that will hatch into female workers. The main purpose of these first generation workers is to bring back food for second generation larvae. Larvae diets consist of insects pre-chewed by the adult workers. Once the larvae in the cells have matured, they will seal themselves within these cells for pupation. In late summer, males will emerge from unfertilized eggs and mate with selected females that will overwinter. In late October or early November, males, workers, older queens, and larvae die off.
Often, homeowners will detect baldfaced hornet nests around their yard. Many home insect sprays are not effective against a hornet colony. Before using any pesticide, read and follow label directions. Colonies that are found in the upper canopy of very mature trees (40 to 50 feet high) should be left alone. However, if you are interested in collecting these paper nests, remember that the colony can be active until early November.
Baldfaced hornets are almost always uninvited guests at fall picnics. Hornets are readily attracted to trash cans located around picnic areas. As the hornets sense recently baked apple pie, they will leave the trash cans and become a disturbance near picnic tables. Then, people will begin to swat at the hornets, provoking them to aggressively sting. Ouch, that can hurt! So if you decide to have a fall picnic, try to eat delightful delicacies (apple pie, pumpkin pie, and other savory sensations) away from trash cans and other areas that may be appealing to the hornets. Have a very enjoyable and safe autumn.
http://www.ppdl.purdue.edu/PPDL/weeklypics/Weekly_Picture10-18-99.html