Close-up of yellow jacket wasp
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This Potent Plant Can Repel Wasps From Your Yard For Good
By LAUREN KRYSTAF
Ward off aggressive wasps by filling your garden with the strong-smelling herb pennyroyal, a member of the mint family known to be an effective wasp deterrent.
Wasps come into your garden seeking food, and while many of them don’t sting, hornets, yellowjackets, and paper wasps have painful stings and get extra aggressive in late summer.
If you see a lot of wasps, there’s likely a nest in your yard, so find and remove it. To keep them out, plant pennyroyal plants that exude a strong menthol scent, which they hate.
Pennyroyals love the sun and tolerate rocky soil. European varieties thrive in moist soil in USDA zones 6 to 9, while American varieties prefer drier soil in USDA zones 5 to 9.
Both spread aggressively, so create a container garden with them on your patio to deter wasps from your outdoor space. Just keep them away from children and pets, as they’re toxic.