wasps in palm trees

I have hundred of wasps buzzing around the palm trees in my backyard. They are also up and down the fence's as well as now in the wood cracks of my front porch. Pretty much everywhere. At times they seem to be fighting with each other. They seem to be everywhere in my neighborhood & and around almost every house roof. We live in Antioch,Ca. Help us please.

This is an easy one. There are many wasps that will forage on trees and become a nuisance. Some can damage the tree but most are feeding on sap or some kind of insect that might be foraging around. In other situations they could be harvesting some part of the tree for nesting. Girdling is when they peel away bark and other tree parts and over time this can become a problem. To keep them away, you have two effective spray options.

The first is to treat the trees with CYPERMETHRIN. This is a highly repellent product wasps don't like. They'll avoid treated areas as explained in our WASP CONTROL ARTICLE so you can use it on your house and plants. Though Cypermethrin will repel, it will also kill insects that land on it repeatedly. That means they should move off and away from your trees after you spray them but if they insist on still landing on treated surfaces, they'll die.

If you don't want to kill them, you can opt to spray with the INSECT REPELLENT. This product is commonly mixed with paint and stain then applied to homes for the sole purpose of repelling insects. But it can also be mixed with water and sprayed on plants. When used this way, it will work as a repellent and not kill anything but it will keep the yard wasp free.

Both products can be applied using a PUMP SPRAYER or a TROMBONE SPRAYER. Treatments should last several weeks but just reapply as needed. And do the spraying in the evening, close to sunset, so you don't bother any leaves on the plants being sprayed. Vegetation can be hurt when sprayed in the middle of the day when it's hot and in direct sunlight so wait till later.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Cypermethrin:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page154.html

Wasp Control Article:  http://www.wasps.net/wasp-and-hornet-control

Insect Repellent:  http://www.non-toxic-pest-control.com/repellents/nbs-repellent-insect-spray

Pump Sprayer:  http://www.gotosprayer.com/sprayers/pump-sprayers/one-gallon-solo-hd

Trombone Sprayer:  http://www.gotosprayer.com/sprayers/pump-sprayers/trombone-pump