How did you manage to cut down the wasp population? I actually have honey bees this year, as well as bumbles, but as many wasps and hornets as ever..

The bees here like Guacamole the best, it seems. The butterflies like various flowers - hostas, heuchera, agastache and the Veronica I just planted. The bees really like the Veronica too.

When I moved here over 3 years ago, it was likely you would get stung if you went outside and I am very allergic (only to wasps not bees). I sought out and destroyed as many nests as possible, as the barn and eaves were infested with very aggressive wasps and there was hardly had a bee in sight. If I couldn't reach with spray, I used the power washer. Many epi pens later with lectures from the doctor that I am supposed to go to the ER after every use... and I can report I haven't been stung yet this year.

Turns out wasps eat bees and their larvae... I did not know this prior but with the decline in wasps showing an increase in bumble bees, I can only hope honeybees start showing up too!

And I just realized, I do not have veronica here. Thank you for the reminder that bees love it, Stephanie,

I have a TON of bumble bees all over my salvia. I am not really happy about it as the salvia is planted right by my front step. They mind their own business for the most part, but I'd never forgive myself if someone got hurt.

I love that plant -- it looks stunning almost all summer -- but I will have to decide in the fall if it is worth living with the bees on it.

I'm glad you haven't been stung this year. Allergies like that are nothing to mess around with.

Last year I didn't clean up a pile of leaves fast enough and yellow jackets built a nest. I found it as I was cleaning it up, with my hands naturally, and they got me about 10 times. They even got under my shirt. I was flinging off clothes as I was running for the house. lol Thankfully my neighbors weren't home.

I haven't seen any nests up high but have had to spray some more underground.

The bees always get to the flowers before I do so I put bags over the flowers I want to pollinate. Otherwise, all the pods would be OPs. The bees don't bother me even if we are pollinating the same hosta at the same time. If one enters the flower I'm pollinating while I'm doing it, I just flick it away with my finger. Buzz off, buster. They don't show any aggression.

I will be better prepared for the bees next year and think I will prefer the second method as with sheer winds we have here, the bags may cause more weight strain on the stalks. Thank you dhaven. I have a few late bloomers I can still work with... that will be good practice. I've used the color coded string method to tag crosses and have to say it is easy and effective.

I'd say that at my house we have a pretty good amount of bumble bees and bees, with just a handful of wasps and other such species (at least I don't see them very much at all). I think it's helped by the amount of bug-eating birds we have around.
http://www.mnn.com/your-home/organic-farming-gardening/stories/how-to-attract-bug-eating-birds-to-your-garden
The article actually goes into more species than I've tried to attract. Just by having a bird feeder and purple martin house we have lots of purple martins, quite a few songbirds, some wood peckers, and occasionally some of the swallows and other species. I might try to attract some of those others (I barely see tanagers but they are so gorgeous and they eat wasps and yellow jackets) but so far it's been pretty well controlled without much work. It might be something to try if wasps and such are a big problem :)

stir fryi:
We have had a similar situation by our front door in the past. Obviously, if it's attracting TOO many bumble bees you may want to move it or get rid of it. I just wanted to say that in 25 years at my house, no one has ever been stung by those kinds of bumblebees despite going through the front door constantly. In my opinion, they are some of the least aggressive of bee-like species so I don't mind them much at all :)