Rusty Bowtie
General Category => General Discussion - Intros => Topic started by: EDNY on April 04, 2014, 09:43:36 AM
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Over the years these little bees just love to plug up the holes on my stored car parts. The parts are stored inside the barn but the little bugs locate the parts, hoses and just about anything with a 5/16" or 3/8" hole..... lay eggs inside and plug the opening with the mud. BTW: The plug mud stinks!
Anyone else have this situation?
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Ed, out here on the west coast, we actually drill 11/16" holes in wood to attract the mason bees. That is almost for sure what you have there. They are very beneficial to your garden.
Now you may not have that specific bee making it's nest, but I think it's a good chance. Perhaps next fall you could drill holes in several pieces of wood, about 2" deep, and put the wood anywhere they could find it. They should be attracted to the wood rather than to your valued Chevy parts!
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Ed, out here on the west coast, we actually drill 11/16" holes in wood to attract the mason bees. That is almost for sure what you have there. They are very beneficial to your garden.
Now you may not have that specific bee making it's nest, but I think it's a good chance. Perhaps next fall you could drill holes in several pieces of wood, about 2" deep, and put the wood anywhere they could find it. They should be attracted to the wood rather than to your valued Chevy parts!
Thanks for the info..it's really a pain when they fill up the holes on my fuel rails...just need to remember to seal them myself before storing.
Ed
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I had them plug my sprinkler system blow out valves. I am not sure they are bees or just a bug of some sort.
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Sorry Ed...I meant to say 11/32" holes, not 11/16"!!! :-[
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They are a group of bees that are lumped together and called Mason Bees because of the mud they use to seal their eggs in the holes. They love distributor caps. They are great pollinators and with the loss of so many honey bees they are very important. I have made and even bought things with holes to attract them but they like my car parts the best and the tubes of my swamp cooler. :D
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Yep, that's right. All the garden stores out here sell little "houses" for the Mason bees. As you say they are very beneficial. Currently there is a serious problem with the normal honey bees...some sort of virus which is killing them off by the thousands.