Preserving a hornet's nest
Posted by Luther Smith on January 20, 2006
Q: What's the best way to preserve a hornet's nest.
Can I spray it with shellac. I'd like to give it to my daughter who is a
second-grade teacher and she could put it in her classroom.
Thanks
A: What a nice idea - providing the nest to your daughter's classroom! Since the nest is made of chewed up wood and is in essence paper, you really don't have to do anything to it as long as you keep it dry. I have kept a nest for years by just keeping it inside where the weather can't get to it. After about 4 years, my wife put it in our moist basement and that was its undoing - it began to absorb moisture and fell apart. But in a school classroom, it should be just fine. I'm sure the kids will wonder about the wasps that lived in the nest so I hope she can tell them about the nest's one time use - a new one will be built next year. Thanks for a good question and I trust she'll enjoy sharing the nest with her students.
John Wiessinger ( January 22, 2006)