I noticed one day some paper wasps were swarming around a saucer that had collected water from my morning spent watering the garden. This saucer of water was in an area that receives quite a lot of use as it is close to the sliding glass door. I do not care to have a wasp watering hole that close to my back door. That was when a light bulb went off in my head. What if I was to make a little watering hole for the wasps by the veggie garden? The veggie garden is far enough from the house to prevent any unwanted encounters plus the watering hole would be close enough to the garden for the wasps to help me out.
Armed with this idea in mind I gathered up some rocks and placed them in a small birdbath that I have not been using this year. I filled the birdbath up with water to just cover the rocks half way. After standing back to admire my creation I left it alone to see how long it would take for the wasps to find their new oasis. It did not take long at all. By the afternoon my little transformed birdbath was a hopping wasp hang out.
The picture below shows them happily drinking away. It can be clicked on to enlarge. (And yes, I am crazy enough to get that close to them to get their picture! In fact, I think my boys find me nuts just for making a wasp watering station.)
I personally find it really cool to see that my little idea is actually working. The wasps land on the rocks, get their drink, and fly on. As with so many things when it comes to gardening with nature I am reminded of that infamous line from the 1989 movie Field of Dreams: “build it and they will come.”
For more information on wasps please check out the two links below. Both have excellent pictures and are a wealth of information.
- Wikipedia
- Washington State University (This is a pdf file so you will need Adobe to read it.)
I love your wasp watering-hole idea! The only question I have about it is that given that it is standing water, will it also become a breeding ground for mosquito larvae if not changed on a regular basis?
/krys
Hi Krys, I was waiting for this question to show up in the comments!
I thought about the standing water issue as well when I put this wasp watering hole together. I personally am out watering on a daily basis thanks to all of my container grown plants and I just blast the birdbath with a hard blast from the hose cleaning out any old water and debris. The wasps seem to be remembering it is there now so I have been making sure I am supplying them with fresh water each day. -Cynthia
Great idea Cynthia! It’s always good to provide food & water for the beneficial insects that visit our garden. Thanks for the link too.
Hi PGL, I thought it was pretty amazing to see the wasps respond to my idea so I was excited to share it here on my blog. -Cynthia
Clever idea…and obviously, the wasps agree!
Thanks Nancy.
I just try to listen to my garden and the creatures both big and small that visit it. -Cynthia
We once adopted a tomato hornworm that was a “host’ for wasp larvae. If you ever see one with what look like grains of rice stuck to it, leave it alone – it’s breeding friends for your garden! You have some nice wasp pictures here. I think I will try the rock idea in my mermaid birdbath. Thanks!
Thank you, jgh! I have never seen a hornworm with the wasp eggs on it before although I have seen pictures. Tomato hornworms are so ugly to begin with I imagine the eggs on their back make them look even more gross. LOL Thanks for the compliment on the pictures.
-Cynthia
I don’t care much for bees, but I leave them alone. I don’t kill them and freak out when they show up around my house. I don’t even know where the one that stung me came from, I wasn’t by a hive or anything. It was a weird looking bee I’ve never seen before (and I hope to never see again if they have the habit of stinging for no apparent reason).
Neat idea. I’ve got lots of rocks in my yard.
Cinj, I thought about what happened to you yesterday with your grumpy bee incident when I posted this! I hope you are feeling better today. I wonder what kind of bee it was that stung you. Obviously one that thought you should leave his blackberries alone!
-Cynthia
Brilliant idea. I just wish the wasps realized we’re their friends too. The paper wasps make nests around my house and sting my little daughter. I’ve had to take steps to keep the nests away from the house. I do like them in the garden too, and they never bother me there. Bear is scared of them though.~~Dee
Hi Dee, we have had a problem with the wasps building nests on the eaves all around our deck since we moved into this house and it was just this year that it dawned on me why. It was actually a kind of no duh moment. I started to think about my deck and how I have plants in cotainers all over it (ie food source) and I water daily (ie water, water, water) so no wonder they have been building their nests right there. I made the conditions just too perfect for them not too. I am hoping that by supplying water for them away from the house they will decide on other spots for their nest building. I have a toddler that is in too everything (understatement) and I worry about her getting too close to them as well. -Cynthia
I just wish they wouldn’t take off with my butterfly caterpilars to feed their babies. I have done something very similar to your wasp watering station by making a puddle for the butterflys.
Oh, I know what you mean Deb. It’s a dog eat dog world isn’t it. I wonder if that is why I do not see butterflies in my garden. There are a lot of wasps up here as well as the many birds that like to visit my garden daily. -Cynthia
It looks entertaining. Bees don’t bother me either but I have a healthy appreciation for them and use caution. Some people buy bird baths that are too deep and your rock idea is a clever use to shallow the pond for tiny critters.
I was thinking the same thing Anna about the deep bird baths as I have witnessed some birds having difficulty getting into the bath because of it being to deep. Especially when all they want is a drink. I’ve got more than enough rocks to spare if anyone would like to have some! I don’t produce veggies in my garden instead I seem to grow rocks…. -Cynthia
What a wonderful idea! I think I shall try it too! I love my little garden pests that do their job in nature. Don’t want them to get too close to me, but love to watch them!
Brenda
Hi Brenda! I was enjoying watching the wasps visiting their new watering hole and it made me remember what I had read in a Sharon Lovejoy book. Someone had told her the wasps reminded them of fairies. I liked that.
-Cynthia
We have had a lot of wasps in our garden this year as well. We’ve had everything from your same paper wasps to the tiny parasitic wasps that keep our population of caterpillars down. We are in total agreement with you… wasps are our friends. How smart of you to make a watering station for them!
Thanks Shibaguyz! I am amazed at how well my idea is working. It is pretty neat really. -Cynthia
What a good idea. I have just the thing to do something similar in my garden. I have plenty of wasps around my front patio area so maybe I’ll try to “lure” them away with a watering hole more suited to my liking… thanks for sharing your tip!
Hi Kathleen, this idea seems to be keeping them away from my deck as I have noticed fewer and fewer trying to get water off of my container grown plants since I started doing this. To me it makes sense, and like I previously mentioned in an above comment, they seem to be remembering it is there now. It is much better than having them swarm all over my deck looking for water! -Cynthia
I know this is an old post, but I found it very intriguing; humans can help wasps out. Many people find bees or any kind of insect to be frightening and a “waste of space”, including me many of times. But, after reading this article, I have found that wasps help us out by thriving in our gardens to produce a better atmosphere in which the unwanted insects can be demolished. To have them stay around your garden, you produced a water hole, which resembles a small brook or stream where the wasps would take a drink in nature anyway. You’re definitely correct on the movie quote, as we see a similar event happen with birdhouses. Nice job!
Thank you Emily for this very thoughtful comment. I’m pleased that you found this to be interesting. -Cynthia