Where Wasps Nest in Barnet
A wasp nest starts with a single queen in spring and grows all season. Most of what we are called to in Barnet is in one of four places, and three of them are a direct consequence of how the borough was built.
Eaves and soffits
The 1920s and 1930s semis that make up most of Finchley, Mill Hill, Edgware, Whetstone and Burnt Oak have deep overhanging eaves and soffit boards that open up as they age. A gap of a few millimetres at a soffit joint is all a queen needs, and the nest then builds in the roof space directly behind it.
Lofts
Barnet lofts are large and often only visited twice a year. A nest can reach full size before anyone goes up for the Christmas decorations, which is why loft nests in this borough are frequently bigger than the ones we see elsewhere.
Outbuildings on the green edge
Towards Totteridge, Arkley and the top of Mill Hill there are garages, summerhouses, stables and workshops that nobody opens between spring and autumn. That is a season of undisturbed growth, and it is worth a look inside in June rather than discovering it in September.
In the ground and in banks
Barnet's long gardens, compost heaps and grassy banks also hold ground nests. These are easy to walk into with a mower and are the ones most likely to result in someone being stung before they know the nest is there.
What not to do
- Do not block the entry hole — wasps will chew a new way out, sometimes into the room below
- Do not treat a nest yourself from a ladder; being stung at height is how people get hurt
- Do not disturb a ground nest with a mower or strimmer once you know it is there
- Do not use a shop aerosol on a large nest — it rarely reaches the centre and provokes the rest
