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Garden Shed Projects

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Boarding the loft out today and found this. Looks old and look my since vacated. It’s only about 50mm/2” around. Any idea what built it?

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It was the fresh air bird. They build their nests out of fresh air so that you can't see them.

Edit.

That was my failed attempt to be funny because no photos came through.
 
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Looks like the type of nest a queen wasp builds to hatch her first workers. Didn't know they did this till a couple of years ago when I found quite a few in the gardens where I work, had about 5 full blown nests that year but as they eat cabbage white caterpillars I'm happy to leave them be if they aren't in the way
 
I was 13 when watched a wasp build a nest on the ceiling rose in my bedroom. I watched quite fascinated for a couple of hours and woke my father who told me not to be stupid. I told him I wasn't being stupid, a wasp was really building a nest on my ceiling rose - he got a towel and removed it, it had about a dozen cells in it.
 
Quick, burn the house down! 😆🤣
Dont actually, though.....

In the summer i had hornets invade my workshop, trying to set up shop. They kept coming back for a week or so! I had a george hoover hose taped to a long stick..... for some reason they wanted to make love with a juction box on the ceiling ( 2.7m up )
 
Bit of a dichotomy.

I'm a life-long Beekeeper. Wasps are incredibly important to the local ecosystem and if at all possible, should be left well alone.

However, wasps can completely destroy a colony of bees in just a few days.

In the autumn, wasps can try to invade a beehive to steal stores (honey). The bees will normally try to defend their colony by killing the wasps but bees can only sting once before they die - wasps have the advantage of having a smooth sting so each wasp can kill many bees.

If enough wasps get into a hive, they can weaken and kill the bees and steal all the winter stores in just a few days - it's a complete frenzy of killing as the bees frantically try to defend the hive and the wasps just kill them. There's a limit to what the beekeeper can do to help - in the Autumn, we narrow the hive entrances so the bees only have to defend about 5cm of opening rather than the 60cm of the whole front of a hive...however, once a few wasps get in, the results can be ferocious and terminal for the colony.

So, for a Beekeeper, wasps are good, but only if they are well away from your hives.

Don't get me started on hornets... (European or Asian!)
 
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Yes wasps, I often get them trying to build them on a shed door the most awkward place possible when there is mature woodland over the road that must have far better places to nest.
But I upgraded last year to lawn wasps not sure of type but they are small and fast can't catch a photo with phone need to get the old bridge Fuji out next year as sure they will survive winter as hardly had any frost or snow so far
 
Wasps, we get 3 or 4 a year in our roof space - spaced into deafferent sections of the roof as they are territorial, they tend to build them quite close to the eves. They don't cause us any bother that high up so we leave them along. Occasionally get them under the floor and enter through the air vent, not so convenient.

To keep them off our patio table.
I've found these fake nests work remarkably well. You see the odd wasp appear but they tend to shoot off once they spot the fake nest. It does not totally eliminate the odd visitor in autumn, but it reduced the amount by 90% or more.
They are available in most stores, Mr Bazos etc. Price about double the £4 paid over the past 10 years ago. They tend to last 3 or 4 seasons. Although recent reviews are complaining about the materials rotting. The key is to put them up at the first sign of wasps ie about May June time depending on the season. They wont deter an established nest, but they do deter wasp scouts as wasps wont go near the territory of an established nest. You do read reviews of people who found they don't work, I an only assume they left it too late in the season or they put them in a place that didn't convince the wasps its was real. I find hanging from a tree brank or from the patio umbrella works well. take down after the season as the winter will rot the fabric.
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