A very benign, green, environmentally friendly and frugal way to get rid
of yellow jackets is to use a canister style vacuum cleaner (like a shop
vax or electrolux). Simply place the hose next to the nest entrance on
a nice afternoon and leave it turned on for a couple of hours. As the
yellow jackets come and go they get sucked into the vacuum. No mess, no
pesticides, and it works! I learned this trick from a neighbor who paid
an exterminator $50 to remove a nest of yellow jackets from their
exterior walls. Of course you don't want to open the vacuum for a day
or two. I assume the wasps die rather quickly with the dust and dirt in
the vacuum, but I've never opened the vacuum to find out. I have used
this method four times without a single problem and much to the
amusement of passers by! I prefer to avoid pesticides whenever
possible.
Aaron Morris - I think yellow jackets suck!