Copper is said to drive away wasps. Wouldn't that be nice? A few copper coins laid out, a copper wire stretched and the annoying insects leave you alone. But is that really true? Find out below whether copper keeps wasps away and how it stands with other home remedies.
Copper does not keep wasps away
The thing about home remedies for wasps
There are many home remedies for late summer wasp plagues, especially on the internet. Here speak (or write) one or the other rumors and half-truths around. So you can be skeptical about some of the propagated wasp home remedies. There is some truth to some methods: Wasps, for example, find ethereal-herbal smells, such as those of lavender, basil or frankincense, quite repulsive. Whether they can be driven away by this is another matter. Certainly not from a coffee table covered with fresh plum cake.
Most home remedies for wasp repellent are only partially effective. And they are:
- Depending on the situation and
- Seasonal
Bordering the terrace with a bed of lavender can certainly irritate wasps, but only if there isn't too much attraction on the terrace in the form of open jam jars or juicy grilled steaks. When relaxing on a deck chair, however, you can tend to get more peace and quiet.
Also, the scent of wasp repellent plants naturally tends to be concentrated in the flowering period. The emergence and vehemence of the wasps is also seasonal - from August they are particularly numerous and active.
Copper has almost no effect
Given the widespread belief that copper coins would drive away wasps, the effect does not even increase depending on the situation or the season. Even if many a wasp plaguer enthusiastically announces that they have noticed a certain effect - the voices on science agree that there is nothing to this method.
Although copper is toxic to lower organisms and is also used against snails, the metal only attacks the snail slime and does not kill the animals. Copper can certainly do nothing against wasps. In a solid, compact form, the metal does not change its state of aggregation in the slightest when exposed to air or the heat of the sun. So nothing escapes that could bother wasps.
And even if it smells unpleasant to her, it's like lavender: it will never put her off a salmon roll or a sugar bun. A wasp worker who has to work all day for a huge state cannot afford to turn down such an opportunity to eat only because of somewhat unpleasant side effects.