North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["Lutesville" <Lutesville@cox.net>]

> By far the most effective treatment for any bee or wasp stings is clear
glue
> applied to the sting--the sooner the better.  With yellowjsckets, reapply
> after bathing for several days.  Works great!!


Tom,
I haven't tried the glue trick, but we use a TENS unit to shock our stings
and poisonous bites. Venom, it seems, is made of various proteins linked by
a weak electrical bond. A mild electrical shock breaks the link and you get
very little swelling or itching if it is done immediatly after you get
stung. You could probably get the same effect by wetting the spot and
pressing a 9-volt battery against it.

To lessen the chance of facial stings, get a yard or so of netting at
wal-mart. Costs less than a dollar. Put on a hat and wrap the netting loosly
around your head. Let it drape down to your shirt's neckline, and tuck it
in. It will do much the same as your favorite beekeeper's veil, and the
critters will have a hard time reaching you.

Might be a good idea to knock down that nest, then run like ... well, you
know. Go back later and throw a piece of netting over the downed nest. Then
you can spray with whatever you want to use, and fewer of the beasts will be
able to get you.

We removed what we locally call Eastern Yellow Jackets from a home today.
Using a vaccuum cleaner, I sucked the beasts out of the air as they came
into and out of the nest through the small opening in the wall. In due time,
we were seeing fewer stingers flying into the nest, and were able to open
the wall with a minimum of trouble. I wouldn't have done it without a veil,
though.

Joyce