Why are there suddenly so many wasps in late summer?
It is the colony's biggest moment. A single yellowjacket nest near a Centennial home can hold thousands of workers by late summer, and every one of them is foraging. Add cooler nights, a shrinking food supply and rising aggression, and the Centennial patio becomes the most attractive place around.
Should I be worried about a nest in the ground?
A ground nest deserves respect. The entrance hole in a Centennial lawn looks small, but the cavity beneath, often an old rodent burrow, can hold thousands of workers. Treatment is a dusting of the entrance at dusk, which any Centennial provider can do quickly, followed by a check that traffic has stopped.
Is it safe to seal the hole where wasps are going into my wall?
Sealing is the last step, never the first. A Centennial provider dusts the void, leaves it open so returning foragers carry the product inside, and comes back to confirm the colony is dead. Once it is quiet, the Centennial entry gets sealed so next year's queen cannot use it.
Can I just leave the nest alone until winter?
Leaving a nest is safest early and riskiest late. In May a Centennial nest holds one queen and a handful of workers; by August the same nest may hold hundreds or thousands, and the workers get aggressive as the season winds down. Weigh how close it is to daily activity around your Centennial home before deciding to wait.
Will wasps come back to the same nest next year?
No, wasps do not reuse a nest. The colony dies in fall and only the new queens survive, hidden under bark or in attics around Centennial until spring. A queen may build a fresh nest near the old site, though, so removing the old comb and sealing gaps at a Centennial home reduces the odds.
Are wasps considered an under-controlled pest?
Among people who follow the issue, strongly yes. For Centennial, Colorado the relevant figure is this: in the Moths and Butterflies of New Zealand Trust's mid-2025 survey of 1,055 individuals and 100 restoration groups, 89% considered existing wasp control insufficient and 96% called it a high priority; because respondents self-selected, the New Zealand figures likely run higher than general opinion. Local conditions in Centennial, Colorado can differ from the survey population, so confirm the specifics with an on-site inspection.
Is it safe to remove a wasp nest yourself?
The national picture, which Centennial has no reason to escape: the Moths and Butterflies of New Zealand Trust's June to August 2025 survey of 1,055 individuals and 100 restoration groups found 16% citing safety as a reason not to control wasps, close behind cost at 17%; the unweighted results are specific to New Zealand. In Centennial, ask providers to put the number of visits and any re-treatment terms in writing before work begins.