A Case for the Underdog, the Wasp
These flying insects with bad reputations are a vital piece of our ecosystem
Spring is here; everything is alive. The garden is dynamic, animated by characters toiling in the soil and flying through the air. Many of these characters (insects, birds, and more) are executing, naturally and often accidentally, their important role of pollination.
There is one character in particular who suffers from a poor reputation, but whose work is vital to the success of the garden. I have been waiting a decade for this precious opportunity to advocate for this hard-pressed pollinator staple: the wasp.
In my line of work we frequently install so-called “pollinator gardens”. Oftentimes when someone requests a “pollinator garden,” what they are actually asking for is a bumble bee and butterfly garden. Occasionally, there is talk about a sphinx moth or a cute small bird. There is much celebration of these “beautiful” flying creatures alongside an almost universal condemnation of the other, equally critical “pollinators”: wasps, flies, mosquitoes, etc.
So let’s re-examine what a pollinator actually is. According to the organization Pollinator Partnership, pollination occurs “when pollen is moved within flowers or carried from flower to flower by pollinating animals such as birds, bees, bats, butterflies, moths, beetles, or other animals, or by the wind.”
Anyone can be a “pollinator”... caterpillars, flies, bats, humans, you name it. If you can move across a garden or brush against a flower, you can pollinate. And as we all know, without pollination our food chain collapses.
Wasps are crucial to the pollination game, and are considered what professional gardeners and farmers call “beneficial insects”. Certain plants, like figs and certain orchids, depend especially on the wasp for pollination. The flying insects can be feisty but are, in fact, integral to our ecosystem.
Wasps include both yellow jackets and hornets. They are close cousins and an ancient ancestor to the fuzzy bumble bee (and all bees). Social wasps (vs. solitary wasps) are the wasps we are most familiar with here in Louisiana. They live in colonies and are more prone to defend themselves with aggression (stinging) when approached. Considered “apex predators'' at the top of their food chain, they also serve as a reflection of balance in the natural system; if something is amiss in their world it's usually an indicator of some larger disruption.
Aside from their efficient pollination skills, the wasp can be an efficient helper when it comes to pest management in the garden. They consume a large number of other insects—playing an integral role in our native gardens by balancing and managing “pests” without the use of harmful (and less effective) pesticides.
As wasp biologist Seirian Sumner puts it, “Without [wasps], the planet would be pest-ridden to biblical proportions, with much-reduced biodiversity.”
If you think this is a plea to no longer spray/kill wasps, you are on to me. The widespread elimination of these unpopular insects is, quite simply, an unsustainable practice founded in uninformed fear. We must never forget, especially in relation to the natural garden: Life equals Diversity. And a diverse garden includes everyone.
What do you do when you encounter a nest of stinging and flying insects?
Spray with a pressured water hose.
This will effectively encourage them to build their home elsewhere, without killing them.
Displace.
If you're like my good friend Nikki, you can wait until the nest is mostly empty, then grab the damn thing (not the method for the faint hearted).
At my home, wasps and carpenter bees race to build nests on our porch. Though I want to welcome these beneficial insects, the porch is not the best spot for them. We have had good results at repelling them before they even arrive by spraying the eves and corners with a concoction of 1 cup of 25–30% strength vinegar and 2 Tbsp. of orange oil. If we spot a nest starting to form or a hole begun to bore, a spritz of this often deters them elsewhere before they expend too much energy.
When possible, just leave the nest where it is.
Most often if you ignore the wasps, and allow for space around their home, all lives go undisturbed. Orchestrate your life around the nest, the way so many other animals orchestrate their lives around us humans.