Glen, Are you sure the classes are only offered once a year? That sounds strange. Remember there are two types of pesticide licenses. One type is a commercial applicator's license. This license allows you to spray restricted use pesticides for pay. Most lawn/landscaping companies have personnel with this type of license. It is more involved and costs more money. The other type of license is a private applicator's license. This allows you to purchase RU pesticides to spray on your own property/crops (or spray your neighbor's without pay). This is less costly, involves less requirements, and lasts longer (in our state this license lasts for 5 years, whereas, a commercial license must be renewed every year). The University hosts the test for commercial licenses every once in a while, but for private applicator's, you can take the test anytime, by appointment, at the extension office. Cost 25 dollars. I don't believe Ferbam is restricted use (RU). I find there is a lot of confusion about what RU means. There are commercial products for "Ag Use only" but these are not RU, meaning you don't have to have an applicator's license to purchase or apply them. Anyone can purchase them, but, per the label, they are only supposed to be applied to crops intended for sale. Then there are RU products, which can only be purchased and applied by a certified applicator. The reason for this is that, according to the training materials, with RU products there can be an extra risk to the environment, and/or the applicator. RU products clearly say "Restricted Use Only" on the front of the label. RU products may, or may not be, "For Ag Use Only." You can hire someone to spray. Or if you know someone with a private applicator's license, they can treat the soil for you (Capture is used as a soil drench for crown borer. All Capture is, is a short lived pyrethroid) if they don't charge you for it. But if you plan to use RU pesticides, you ought to just get your own license. The training is informative and helpful for all pesticides in general. I wouldn't panic about getting your rasp. treated this year. I doubt it will kill them, but could make them unproductive (A neighbor tore his patch out because they quit producing, but I don't think he lost plants).

Yellow jackets are beneficial insect predators in my garden, so I only kill them if their nest is in an area where they are likely to sting me or my grandchildren. Since I try to avoid the use of toxic chemicals, I looked for an alternative solution. This turned out to be a shop vacuum, with the nozzle lodged in place just below the entrance hole. It catches them both leaving & returning, and the noise angers them - so it catches even more. I place the nozzle at night & turn the switch on, so I can plug in the extension cord from a safe distance to start the vacuum. After running for a whole day, nearly every worker in the nest was caught. This usually kills the nest, since the majority of the larvae will starve without the workers.

We once had a waspnest under our front door. We couldn't reach the nest, so to get rid of the wasps, we ran a vacuum-cleaner (canister type) with the suction hose taped down where the wasps walked into their entrance. As they walked from their landing spots toward their entrance, they got sucked up by the vacuum. To make sure they would not establish another nest, the area under the sill was sealed with silicone (or whatever it was). I was sorry to kill them; they had never done me harm, but we were afraid that they might get mad and attack someone some day....>lawsuit I kind'a like wasps (aren't they excellent pollinators?), and so long as they exist peacefully in the yard, I let them be. But if they attack me, I get rid of their nest. Also, some wasps are beneficial predators: their larvae eat the larvae of Mexican Bean Beetle, see Jimster's post on the Legume forum (link below). Diatomaceous Earth (DE) will also kill wasps so long as the DE remains dry and the powder gets on the wasps's bodies. The lady with the wasps in her dog run might get ideas on how to use DE to rid her yard of wasps from this earlier post: RE: Overrun with Houseflies Thu, Jul 19, 07 at 14:24 Food-grade Diatomaceous Earth (DE) will kill the adult flies (and all other insects that get the DE powder on their bodies, including bees and other beneficials). DE works by dehydrating the insects. If you get DE on your hands, you'll see your hands get very dry. When working with DE, you should wear a good face mask. In other words, don't breathe the powder. You could put a layer of dry leaves, paper, or other carbon materials on top of your piles, and on top of this dry layer, sprinkle a thin layer of DE. The DE will kill the adult flies. For the DE to work, the DE will have to stay dry. Whenever you add more greens to your piles, top them with a layer of dry materials, and top it all with DE. Your flies will croak if the DE stays dry. So far as I know, food-grade DE is compatible with organic growing methods. Peaceful Valley Farm and Garden Supply, Grass Valley, CA 95945, has 50 lb. bags of food-grade DE for $25 + shipping. (888) 784-1722 Don't use swimming-pool-grade DE; it contains other non-food-grade materials that are incompatible with growing foods.

So far I haven't noticed much activity in the yard, but last year there were no fewer than 5 nests fairly close around the house. Last year I was stung 3 separate times, from the same nest, and always on the legs! I was mowing the lawn and pruning the front garden, and kept forgetting about this dumb nest right in middle of the front lawn (in a chipmunk hole). I've tried the onion, which didn't do much, but will have to try some urine next time. A spoonful of Benadryl taken right away is helpful. Yellow jackets are an aggressive wasp species, but I leave their nests alone if they are not in an obtrusive location. As long as you are calm, they don't bother you even if you are close to the nest.