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Carpenter Bees actually...

 
J Garlits
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Okay, so I'm building a carpenter bee house, since I have ... carpenter bees ... in my backyard. They're making Swiss cheese of the timber holding the roof up on my back porch. The bee house will be a BB project soon, but today I have a question.

I'm assuming (yeah, I know) that there are probably larvae in the existing holes. And I want to cover the holes eventually with something natural, possibly putting pieces of dowel in there and sawing them off. Then covering the exposed wood with thin galvanized? Just thinking here.

Am I right about the larvae? When do they usually leave? I want to wait until after that date to dowel them shut.

Bonus points if anyone knows if bee pheromones are really a thing. Does it work to attract different types of bees to a desirable "house"?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

j

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Anne Miller
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I can't answer your question though I would like to ask why a carpenter bee house rather than a mason bee house?

It seems from this thread that carpenter bees make their own house:

https://permies.com/t/86292/Advice-carpenter-bees

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Mike Barkley
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Bees communicate mostly via pheromones. Whether or not they will entice carpenter bees out of their existing home is above my beekeeper pay grade.

I do know firsthand that carpenter bees will literally destroy existing structures. The carpenter bee traps work well but it results in bee death from starvation if you don't relocate them daily.

Argue for your limitations and they are yours forever.

 
J Garlits
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Anne,

I have a carpenter bee problem. They're eating the timber on my back porch. I want them around, I'm just going to cover the Swiss-cheesy timber with some thin metal and build them a house. From what I've read, carpenter bees will occupy the home you build if the holes are 1/2 inch. You don't even have to drill the holes all the way, just start them, and they'll finish the work for you. Gives them something to do, I guess.

Anne Miller wrote:I can't answer your question though I would like to ask why a carpenter bee house rather than a mason bee house?

It seems from this thread that carpenter bees make their own house:

https://permies.com/t/86292/Advice-carpenter-bees

Passionate advocate for living at a human scale and pace.
Help me grow the permaculture presence in Indiana https://permies.com/t/243107
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J Garlits
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Everything I read about bee pheremones from the manufacturers are touting their usefulness in baiting bees into the traps. I'm not building a trap, I'm building a house. I would assume that it is intent agnostic. If it works, for instance that carpenter bees are attracted by carpenter bee pheremone spray, I'll use that to lure them to a new home, not to their death. I mean, I've killed quite a few of them with my But-a-Salt contraption, but then I read that they're super beneficial I stopped doing that. I want them around, but I'd rather them be where I want them. Or at least not in holes in my structural 4x4s.

Mike Barkley wrote:Bees communicate mostly via pheromones. Whether or not they will entice carpenter bees out of their existing home is above my beekeeper pay grade.

I do know firsthand that carpenter bees will literally destroy existing structures. The carpenter bee traps work well but it results in bee death from starvation if you don't relocate them daily.

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R West
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Have you found any more information about this, Jim? I’d love to know as well.

We’ve got carpenter bees burrowing into our siding and I’d love them elsewhere. I’m planning to build a bee house for them. Sounds like we’re in a pretty similar situation with the carpenter bees!

"If we are not willing to fail we will never accomplish anything. All creative acts involve the risk of failure." - Madeleine L'Engle

 
J Garlits
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Anecdotal evidence from Amazon reviews makes me question the effectiveness of any bee pheromone product. It doesn’t look effective.

I’m going to observe my bee house this year and see if they simply take to it or not. If not, I’ll move it and see if that helps. Maybe try pointing the front in different directions.

j

R West wrote:Have you found any more information about this, Jim? I’d love to know as well.

We’ve got carpenter bees burrowing into our siding and I’d love them elsewhere. I’m planning to build a bee house for them. Sounds like we’re in a pretty similar situation with the carpenter bees!

Passionate advocate for living at a human scale and pace.
Help me grow the permaculture presence in Indiana https://permies.com/t/243107
Concise Guide to Permies' Publishing Standards: https://permies.com/wiki/220744

 
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