WSU Extension Q&A: Those wasps in your basement may be flying ants

Q. I walked into my basement and saw a swarm of insects flying around. There were hundreds of them and they looked like fat wasps. What do you think they were?

A. It is always difficult to identify insects without looking at them, but around this time of year and sometimes in the spring, it is not uncommon to get a swarm of ants. Alate (winged) ants may look like wasps because they have a narrow waist, however, if they are really alate (winged) ants. Ants will sometimes develop wings and swarm as a mechanism for dispersal to form new colonies. Unfortunately, they must have emerged in your basement instead of outside. It is not necessarily an indication of a structural pest; there could simply be a small gap from which they entered and now are stuck in the basement. If you want to make sure that they are not a carpenter ant or similar structural house pest, then get the ant identified down to species.

Q. I am making grape juice with a steam juicer. The directions with the juicer do not say I need to process my juice in the boiling water canner. It says I can simply have the jar hot, the lid hot, put in the juice and allow them to seal at room temperature. What is your opinion?

A. We recommend processing the jars in the boiling water canner or steam canner. The reason is that you have not pasteurized the juice, jar and lid as a single unit. Although the three parts are hot, there is not a kill step for spoilage and pathogenic organisms. Bacteria, yeasts and mold are found on every surface in our environment, and are airborne. When planning to store any home canned food at room temperature, it needs adequate heating for shelf stability. Processing foods in a canner serves two purposes: It heats the food to destroy organisms that will cause either spoilage or safety issues, and it forms a vacuum seal, which is to prevent contamination of the product. A sealed jar is only safe if it is properly processed and sealed. A seal alone does not insure safety, and can in fact cause the very problems you are trying to avoid because it provides the perfect environment for growth of some undesirable organisms.

Q. What is a Certified Crop Advisor (CCA) or Certified Professional Agronomist (CPAg)?

A. For those who may be asking, agronomy is the study of crops and soils. Both programs exist so that producers know that the person giving them advice has studied and passed a test on agronomy and they understand the fundamentals of growing crops. Beyond the test, they are required to attend continued training in nutrient management, soil and water management, integrated pest management, crop management and professional development.

This story was originally published November 3, 2017 at 1:39 PM with the headline "WSU Extension Q&A: Those wasps in your basement may be flying ants."