Homemade Hornet Traps With Vegetable Oil

About Hornets

• Hornets, including bald-faced hornets, are technically wasps or yellow jackets. They build their nests in many different places, such as on branches, in hollow trees or logs and under building eaves. Fortunately, homemade traps work on yellow jackets and wasps as well, so don't worry if the hornets in your landscape are not actually hornets.

Bottle Trap

• Carefully cut the top one-third of a plastic 2-liter bottle with a sharp utility knife or pair of scissors. Fill the bottom 1 to 2 inches of the bottle with a mixture made from 1 part brown sugar and 2 parts water. Next, invert the top and insert into the bottom section of the bottle to form a funnel where the hornets can easily get into the bottle, but have a difficult time getting out. Secure the two sections with staples. Smear vegetable oil along the top edge and inside of the top section in the funnel so hornets are more likely to slip and fall into the trap. After drinking the sugar water, the hornets will fall and drown.

Fish Trap

• Make a teepee-like structure with sticks. Alternatively, cut the bottom off of an open shoebox and set it upright. Place a shallow dish under the sticks in between the sides of the shoebox. Fill it with an equal mixture of vegetable oil and water. You can also use liquid dish or laundry detergent. Hang a small raw fish from a string attached to the top of the teepee or shoebox. The fish will attract the hornets. After eating, they may fall into the water. The vegetable oil coats their bodies so the hornets sink and drown.

Tips

• Wear long sleeves, long pants, gloves, goggles and a face mask to discard the dead hornets in the fish trap or to change the bait. Carefully grab the dish full of the dead hornets and throw out the contents in a plastic bag and seal. There will likely still be hornets flying around. For the bottle trap, it's best to discard the whole thing and start over with a new bottle. Also, you can experiment with the bait as necessary. For example, try a piece of bologna instead of fish, or soda instead of sugar water.