France in Focus

Today just became eventful. We had a load of oak on our land, mostly cut over the years as firewood but never used. We wanted nothing for it and a young local man was happy to come, split it, and take it away. He arrived this morning with a mate and they promptly felled a dead tree. As it fell it fouled its neighbour, disturbing a nest of very angry hornets which immediately went on the attack. Dimitri's mate had been stung on the arm. They contacted a pest controller who arrived, donned a heavy duty all-in-one protective outfit, and sprayed powder into the nest which was inside the trunk about 6' off the ground. Evidently, the tree is virtually hollow and the nest enormous, such that the pest controller can't guarantee that the treatment will destroy the entire nest. The men have all left now to give the treatment time to take effect. Dimitri will return on Monday to assess the state of the nest, recall the pest controller if necessary, or continue to fell the stricken tree as its hollowed, weakened state makes it a danger. 🫣

Thankfully the horses are at a safe distance from all that excitement and potential danger.

* Tip of the day. Should you get stung by a hornet, simply light a cigarette and burn the sting site. I'm assured by Dimitri's friend that it stops the swelling! I have no idea what I should do as a non-smoker!

It's amazing how hornets love nesting in a hollowed out oak. We had one across the road from us in our old place and had it dealt with as the owner of the land was rarely there.

Yes, heat draws the venom from stings - same for jellyfish and vives (stone fish).
If you don't smoke, a match or gas lighter works just as well.

For any wasp or hornet sting, heat followed by a liberal application of vinegar does the trick in most cases.
Acid for wasps, alkaline for bees

Not just oak - - we had them building in one of our walnut trees last year but got rid of them with a high pressure spray killer (not cheap).

ajm wrote: ↑Sat Jul 29, 2023 12:28 pm Not just oak - - we had them building in one of our walnut trees last year but got rid of them with a high pressure spray killer (not cheap).

This was me, dressed to kill , just before letting 'em 'ave it with one of those sprays.
Scary old job when you're up a ladder at night & can't get very far away but the sprays marked 'foudroyant' knock 'em down pretty smartish.
Not a job I'd like to repeat too often.

Judging by the numbers of both european and asiatic hornets all over the fruit trees (as usual), there are nests in the vicinity here. I keep a close eye on where they fly off to. Coming across a nest is my worst nightmare...