What to Do About a Yellow Jacket Nest in the Ground
A yellow jacket nest in the ground is a covered paper nest built inside an old rodent burrow or a hollow under a rock or landscape timber. The only sign above ground is one small hole with wasps flying straight in and out. Our technicians most often find them in burrows near the foundation and in landscape beds. Here is how to find the hole, how big the nest gets by late summer, why fall brings the stings, why gasoline and water make it worse, and when the cold ends it.
- Ground nests sit in old rodent burrows, under rocks and landscape timbers, and in flower beds.
- Texas A&M AgriLife says a southern yellowjacket nest in Texas can hold up to 20,000 adult workers.
- Texas A&M AgriLife says colonies reach their largest size by August or September.
- Gasoline or a garden hose down the hole seldom works and can bring multiple stings.
- A ground nest is treated after dark, when the workers are back inside.
How do you find a yellow jacket nest in the ground?
Watch in daylight for wasps flying straight in and out of one small hole. The University of California says wasps flying to and from a single spot are probably going to their nest, and the University of Kentucky says the best time to look is daytime, when wasps are entering and leaving the opening.
The University of Kentucky says ground nests are often built in old chipmunk or rodent burrows, or under rocks, gutter splash blocks and landscape timbers. Texas A&M AgriLife adds gardens, flower beds, pastures and roadside embankments. Kentucky says surveying the yard for nests during the summer can prevent a painful run-in while mowing or gardening, so walk the beds along the foundation and the lawn edges before the mower does.
The hole you see is not the nest. The University of California says yellowjackets dig a rodent hole bigger by wetting the soil, and that an underground nest can sit quite a distance from the entrance. A crowd at your patio table is not proof of a nest in your yard either, because Kentucky says workers out looking for food may come from a nest several hundred yards away.
Many Texans call these ground hornets, and our yellowjacket page in the pest library shows how to tell one from a paper wasp or a honey bee. One big wasp digging its own hole in bare lawn while the cicadas sing is more likely a cicada killer, a solitary wasp Texas A&M says rarely needs control.
How big does a yellow jacket nest get by late summer?
Bigger than the hole suggests. Texas A&M AgriLife says a southern yellowjacket nest in Texas can run from a few inches to 6 feet or larger, with up to 20,000 adult workers, and that colonies reach their largest by August or September. The University of California puts a colony at 1,500 to 15,000, depending on the species.
It starts small. Texas A&M says a queen comes out in early spring, builds a small paper nest and feeds the first young herself for about 18 to 20 days. Once those first workers are out, the nest can grow to a foot long or larger within weeks, and a big one holds up to 45 levels of comb.
Not every nest gets that big. NC State Extension puts an eastern yellowjacket colony at about 3,000 workers. Either way, one hole in the lawn can mean thousands of wasps below it by August.
Why are yellow jackets so aggressive in the fall?
The colony is at its peak and its insect prey is running out. The University of Kentucky says that in late summer and early fall, colonies near maturity send huge numbers of workers out to feed the developing queens, and the University of California says defensive behavior increases as the season goes on.
The University of Kentucky’s note on foraging yellowjackets says that with insects getting scarce, the workers turn to fruit, ice cream, soft drinks and meat. Texas A&M says the colony is largest in August or September and raises next year’s males and queens in October and November, so the nest stays crowded well into fall.
A wasp away from the nest is a different animal from one at the hole. Kentucky says workers out looking for food are seldom aggressive and that most stings come when one is swatted or trapped against the skin, so move away slowly and check an open can before you drink from it. Near the nest, NC State says many workers swarm out to sting whatever disturbed it.
Can you pour gasoline or water down a yellow jacket hole?
No. The University of Kentucky calls dousing a nest with gasoline or a garden hose a folk remedy that is seldom successful and can result in multiple stings. NC State Extension says never to pour gasoline or any fire accelerant down a nest hole, because it is extremely hazardous, environmentally unsound and kills nearby plants.
| What people try | What the sources say | What to do instead |
|---|---|---|
| Gasoline down the hole | A fire hazard that also kills the plants around it (NC State) | Leave the hole alone and mark the spot |
| A garden hose or a bucket | Seldom works and can bring multiple stings (Kentucky) | Keep people and pets back from the hole |
| A spray into the hole | Liquid soaks into the soil before it reaches the nest (Texas A&M) | A dust the workers carry inside, after dark |
| Plugging the hole | Wall nests sealed early send wasps into the home (Kentucky) | Plug it only once the colony is dead |
Every row comes back to the same point: the nest is out of reach of anything poured in.
Texas A&M says ground nests are best treated with a dust, because the wasps track it deep into the nest as they go in and out, and that anyone with a heart condition or a known sting allergy should not try it. Kentucky says any treatment goes in at night, when most of the yellowjackets are back in the nest, with the opening found in daylight and the flashlight beam kept off the entrance. It calls treating a nest yourself a danger zone, says nothing in pest control is more frightening than a botched treatment, and says calling a professional is usually prudent. The University of California says hiring one reduces the risk to you and your family.
Do yellow jackets die in the winter?
The workers and the old queen do. Texas A&M AgriLife says most yellowjacket nests die in late fall or early winter after the first hard frost, and the University of Minnesota says freezing temperatures in the mid to upper 20s Fahrenheit kill the old queen and workers. Only newly mated queens survive the winter, alone in shelter.
The University of Minnesota says each nest is used for one season and stays empty the next, and every spring a queen builds a new one from scratch. Texas A&M says the old nest decomposes fast, but that in sheltered spots or mild winters a colony can carry on into the next year and grow larger than a one-year nest.
A nest far from where anyone walks, mows or plays can be left for the frost. Texas A&M says to mark the area with a warning sign until then, and to plug the empty hole after the first hard frost so a new queen does not move in next spring.
If you mow over a yellow jacket nest
- Leave the area at once. Getting away from the nest as quickly as possible is the first step the University of California gives once the wasps start stinging.
- Walk away covering your face with both hands, toward thick plants, a car or a building, as Clemson Extension advises. Do not swat, because Clemson says swift movements only draw more of them.
- Once clear, check your clothing. A wasp stinger has no barbs, the University of California says, and can be used again and again, above all when the wasp gets inside clothing.
- Wash each sting with soap and water and hold an ice pack on it, as the University of Kentucky advises, then watch the person stung for 30 minutes, since the University of California says a reaction can start that late.
- The next day, mark the hole from well back while it is light, since Clemson says the entrance should be found and marked in daytime. Keep children and pets away and leave the hole open. Our yellowjacket control page says to mark the spot, stay well back, and call.
What should you do for a yellow jacket sting?
Move away from the nest, then wash the sting with soap and water and hold an ice pack on it. The University of Kentucky says an antihistamine helps the itching and swelling. Get emergency care at once for hives, trouble breathing or swallowing, or swelling of the face, mouth or throat.
For the full first aid steps, read the University of California’s note on bee and wasp stings, and our article on hornets in Texas covers allergic reactions and what many stings at once can do.
How Pest Me Off treats a yellow jacket nest in the ground
A licensed Pest Me Off technician, never a subcontractor, looks for the real nest and each entry feeding it, not just the one hole you found. In protective gear, at the right time of day when the workers are home, the technician applies a professional dust the workers carry deep into the nest. The entry stays open while the colony is still active, and the void is sealed only after the activity has stopped.
We also install the Scorched Earth Barrier around the foundation and treat the entry zones a slab home gives yellowjackets. The inspection and estimate are free, and same-day service is available when you call before noon, in McKinney, Plano, Frisco and Allen. See our yellowjacket control page for how the visit works, and our paper wasp nests article for the wasps that nest in the open.
Yellow jackets coming out of the lawn? Same-day pest control in McKinney and the surrounding cities when you call before noon.
We look for the real nest and each entry feeding it, treat it when the colony is home and seal the gap only after the activity has stopped. Free inspection and estimate.
