Wasps/willow/aarghh

[UterusUterusGhali]

I've got a willow dome in my tiny garden.
This year it's been enveloped by large willow aphid and thus wasps, feasting on the homeydew.
I've got mostly enormous median wasps but also regular wasps and hornets on it.

My garden is unusable. I don't mind critters but there are about 200 wasps in my tiny garden at any one time and the kids are refusing to go out there. Putting out the laundry is a nightmare. They're coming into the house.

Will it be better next year or should I cut the willow down in the winter?

*honeydew. Silly autocorrect

Spray the aphids thus removing the food source for the wasps? They'll go elsewhere instead.

We had this at school with a willow structure. Solution was to relentlessly eliminate the aphids, spraying early morning (7.30am) means you can get them before the wasps wake up.

Thank you. The wasps do seem to be less active early in the morning. Good to know it's not just me. :)

I've tried to jet wash them off but they come back again. I'll be more diligent next year.

You need to kill the aphids with insectcide rather than jetwashing them off.