| I have 4 pear trees - only 1 is infested with large black wasps with light stripes. I can't get close to the tree. What are they? Thanks, |
| With any luck the yellowjackets are nesting elsewhere and are visiting your tree to feed on the ripe fruit. They should go home at dusk and at that time you can safely approach the tree and pick the fruit. Be sure to remove any that are damaged or overripe. You can followup by hosing the tree down to rinse away any sweet sap or fruit juice on the leaves and stems. If the yellowjackets are actually nesting in the tree you may want to just leave them alone this year. In fall and winter they will abandon their nest and you can remove the fruit from the tree. There's not much you can do to discourage them from taking up residence in your fruit trees other than to watch the trees carefully for signs of yellowjacket activity and knock down or hose down any nests you see as soon as they are being built. Continually doing this will drive the pests away. |
