From: "John Howe" <[log in to unmask]>

> A few years back, before I got my bees, I had an infestation of carpenter
> bees living in my deck. I had them exterminated and that was that. Lately
> however I have seen a carpenter bee lingering around my hives. Dunno where
> it lives. Is this a potential threat? What should I do?

   It's dismaying to hear that one of our beekeeping fraternity has such a
cavalier attitude toward one of our major pollinators. Carpenter bees are
taking up some of the slack for early spring bloom, where honeybees are not
present.  See:
http://www.pollinator.com/gallery/April/carp_privet.htm

   Learn about them, before the knee-jerk response to a myth. They are no
threat, either for stinging, or for your buildings. The stories about them
"riddling" boards are from those who kept poisoning the holes so the bees
had to drill new ones.

   My workshop has stood for almost 50 years, with a major population of
carpenter bees, that always signal the arrival of spring to me. The building
stands firm, despite many carpenter nests. We had about 50 tons in one end
of it last year without even a sag on the "riddled" joists. I used to do
home repair in another life, and while I sometimes saw carpenter bee nests,
I never saw significant damage.

   I know; many of our tax supported state extension agencies will tell you
how to kill them, without so much as a mention of their value as
pollinators. This kind of advice is misuse of my tax money.

  In some places, where any bees are scarce, folks have learned their value
and put up housing sites for them, so their fruit gets pollinated.

   Protect our pollinators. The food supply you save may be for your
grandchildren.  Or for wildlife...


Dave Green   SC  USA
The Pollination Home Page (Now searchable): http://pollinator.com