Wonderful Wasps

Great black wasp (Sphex pensylvanicus) on Pycnanthemum virginicum or slender mountain mint

I am embracing wasps this summer. I’ve never been fussed about them, but after doing some more reading, I’ve learned how key they can be to garden health and pollination. Plus, it reinforced the lesson that sooner or later, everybody gets eaten by somebody else.

From microscopic to huge, wasps are with us! What most folks might not realize, is that adult wasps feed on nectar from a huge variety of plants. Natives tend to be favorites, but you’ll see them everywhere in the garden. I plant a variety of flower sizes from itty bitty (for the wee pollinators) up to big and showy. This attracts the largest array of insect pollinators of all shapes and sizes, including wasps. This summer I highly recommend the outstanding Wasps: A Guide for Eastern North America by Heather Holm.

There are the tiny parasitoid wasps that lay eggs on their prey (or in their prey, or next to their prey, or conveniently in the nest of prey). These eggs hatch and the larvae consume the prey, keeping some destructive pests in check. Tomato hornworm is a prime example.

Great golden digger wasp (Sphex ichneumoneus) nectaring on Pycnanthem muticum or mountain mint.

However, some of the biggest and perhaps scariest wasps are predators of insects like katydids, cicadas, and caterpillars. Thread-waisted wasps (subfamily Sphecinae) tend to be solitary predators. The great golden digger wasp and great black wasp pictured hunt katydids and crickets. They sting their prey to immobilize it and haul it back to their larvae for consumption. The adults sip nectar. One of my favorites that are bit more social are cicada killer wasps. They are huge and hunt cicadas. They fly with a bug many times their size just to feed the younguns.

Great golden digger wasp (Sphex ichneumoneus) showing you her pretty coloring.

Our eastern yellow jackets get a bad rap, and sometimes deservedly so. At this time of year, their nests are at peak activity with workers hunting a wide variety of prey. They are also attracted to any sugary substance, including your soda. However, you’re too big to haul back to the nest for the kids. Have some mountain mint on hand, and they’ll flock to it’s nectar-rich flowers.

Give wasps a chance. They might surprise you!