In the spring a new queen wasp will emerge from hibernation to find a new nest which will be in a cavity in a wall or underground for example.

Once she has found a site she will start to construct nest cells for her eggs from chewed up wood mixed with saliva into a paste; this dries into a papery substance. She will hunt insects such as aphids and flies to feed her first batch or larvae until they pupate and emerge as adult workers a few weeks later. These workers then take care of the new larvae instead; hunting insects and building up the nest while the queen lays her eggs. 

In late summer the quen will begin producing fertile female queens and drones that leave the nest to mate. The old colony and drones will start to die off as it gets colder and there are less flowers to feed from but the new queens will survive by hibernating until the spring where they will emerge and start their own colonies.