Direct the insecticide dispenser nozzle to the nest entrance for best control. Check the colony entrance the next day for activity and reapply if necessary. If bumble bee control is necessary during daylight hours, begin spraying the insecticide in a fanning motion as you approach the nest to repel colony defenders and returning foragers. For complete nest elimination, direct the stream of insecticide directly into the nest entrance. Check the nest for activity the next day and reapply if necessary.
Protective clothing is highly recommended.
Since bumble bees are excellent pollinators, we should encourage management strategies that help maintain and increase wild colonies. Bumbles bees' natural nesting habitat has been drastically decreased by industrial and residential expansion. Large farm monoculture practices are also detrimental to good nesting sites. A way to encourage bumble bee nesting is to set aside uncultivated farm land or hedgerows that are attractive to queens searching for nesting sites. Queens are not too selective as long as the potential nesting site is a dark, underground cavity filled with fine plant fiber.