how to prevent bee stings


  #1  
Old 08-14-18, 11:46 AM
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how to prevent bee stings

i hate yard work and the reasons are numerous. i get poison ivy if i look at it. bugs love me but the latest thing is bees in the ground when i mow grass. there's one section of my yard that they decide to nest in every few years and not the same place every time. last time i was stung was 2 years ago. right afterwards im' very carefully and stare down in front of me or in back of the mower all the time. but after 2 years you start to feel safe.

2 days ago i was not safe..stung me 2x and i havent finished the grass since

obviously its summer and i wear shorts. would sweat pants be enough 'loose' so they wouldnt sting me or would they just keep going higher up until they found my arms and face and sting me. at what point does a bee give up? i'm assuming i need tight bottom ones or use rubber bands, which i have no problem doing. but will they just stick on my sweats and do i have to keep looking down at my sweats and make sure i dont bring them in the house or will they give up . and no i dont know what kind of bees they are. nor do i want close enough to find out.

the entire thing just drives me nuts and obviously it hurts and the huge patches of rough skin itch like crazy sometimes.
 
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Old 08-14-18, 12:06 PM
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would probably just try to locate the nest and spray to kill them really isn't very feasible to wear loose fitting clothing or a veil in the heat of the summer mowing your grass the face is probably the one spot you would not want to be stung at.
 
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Old 08-14-18, 12:11 PM
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I agree with Alan - locate the nest and eradicate them! The only other solution I know of would be stay away from the bees ..... not that staying inside is much of an option.
 
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Old 08-14-18, 12:14 PM
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Down near my pond bees make a nest in the ground every several years. Unfortunately the only way I find them is by mowing over them... and they really don't like that. Once I know their location I spray them and don't have any more trouble for a couple years.

Everywhere else I have never been stung. Our yard is full of flowers and flowering trees so much of my landscape literally buzzes with all the bees about. Even when I bump into or heavily brush against a tree full of bees feeding they don't bother me.

---
I can feel your pain. The last time it happened to me a bee got underneath my safety glasses and stung me on the edge of the eyelid. In addition to really the swelling blocked my tear ducts which caused a two year period of non stop chalazion in the area where I had been stung.
 
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Old 08-14-18, 12:22 PM
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I can feel your pain. The last time it happened to me a bee got underneath my safety glasses and stung me on the edge of the eyelid. In addition to really the swelling blocked my tear ducts which caused a two year period of non stop chalazion in the area where I had been stung.
Yikes!!! about 45 yrs ago a wasp stung me just below my eye and it swelled shut for 3 days but within a week it was only a painful memory. My experience was bad enough I couldn't imagine going thru yours
 
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Old 08-15-18, 07:28 AM
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I was walking the dog in my backyard yesterday & he investigated a woodline shrub that overhangs the lawn. He jumped back when he got stung. I never noticed bees there before. Not many and I couldn't see a hive so they might be ground-nesting hornets. I'm not sticking MY head in there to find the nest! I'm allergic and my last sting sent me to the clinic for cortisone shots. It's frightening and expensive for me--so I wish there was a better way to find their home.
 
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Old 08-15-18, 09:03 AM
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so i'm curious. how do you search for bees every time before you go out mowing grass. i have 1/2 acre. do you walk around slowly and look for them coming from the ground. are they all out and about during the day or is there a certain time of day they are active. and visible

i cant see any practical way of doing this . admittedly i dont even cut that often but even once a month walking with my head down trying to find a hole with bees doesnt sound very fun
 
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Old 08-15-18, 10:47 AM
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I'll share the short version of my story. Skunk had attacked a ground nest at the bottom of my fence and my puppy dogs ran into the remaining very mad occupants. I could see the hole the skunk dug and found remnants of a huge nest all over the back yard. Solution was a couple lengths of 3" pvc (about 20') with my shop vac attached, got me far enough away. Slid the end of the pipe up near the hole and kicked it on. The part I didn't realize was it made them mad but they attacked the end of the pipe, slurp. In 10 or 15 minutes the nest was empty but I returned 30 minutes later to attract and collect those who had been away from the nest.

End of nest, but you might be able to use the long pipe to search for their nest along with collecting the occupants. From what I experienced you might only need to get in the area to rouse them and then spot where they are coming from. Then add some spray once the nest is 99% empty.

Bud
 
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Old 08-16-18, 04:03 AM
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I get occasional nests in a field stone retaining wall. I LOVE Bud's idea! I'm going to try it on the next nest. Up till now I've always resorted to spray cans. Steve
 
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Old 08-16-18, 05:44 AM
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After the collecting was done I gave the end of the hose a shot of bug spray and stuffed a rag in there so they couldn't find their way out. I set the vac aside for a couple of days and carefully peaked inside, all dead. You could wait longer, no rush.

Only concern I had was too much bug spray and the exhaust might not be good if used inside the house so I gave it a good cleaning.

Bud
 
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Old 08-16-18, 07:23 AM
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Another option I'd suggest is to hire an exterminator.
I have allergic reaction to bee stings, so I try to keep my distance.
Recently, while working on the exterior of my house, I encountered a gathering of yellow jackets. I knew that their hive must have been in that area, but I could not see the hive to spray it. I hired an exterminator to take care of the yellow jackets. I was surprised at how affordable it was.
 
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Old 08-16-18, 07:29 AM
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The long pipe reminded me of a similar thing I did several years ago on a ground nest I discovered near my front porch. I didn't feel safe to get close enough to spray down into the hole so I connected 2 pcs of 1/2" plastic conduit together, positioned it at the hole after dark when they're all in the nest, then poured about 1/4 cup of permethrin in the other end and blew it into the hole using an air tank & blowgun. Using water to carry the powder to the nest would probably work just as well--the point is that contact with the insecticide, wet or dry, will kill.
 
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Old 08-24-18, 07:42 AM
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If these are yellow jackets.....there will be another entry/exit somewhere close. You need to find this one... and block it off with a stone or brick or something. They will come at you from this hole if you start fooling around at the other one. Do this in the evening when they are inside.

If these are hornets or wasps.......call a pro.
 
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Old 09-18-18, 07:07 AM
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its been a month since i got stung and i figured id try to cut the grass again. i was careful the entire front of the yard. however. where i got stung wasnt where the bees were. it was about 4 feet away. glad i was very careful. i was able to very very carefully go around them and just used up a half can of spray which was useless but should be last grass cut of the year i hope.
 
 

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