Digger Bees - The Battle Starts Now



Indiana Jones hates snakes. With Henry Jones, Sr, it's rats.
With me. It's bees.  Why did it have to be bees?

Sunday morning I went to the backyard only to see hundreds of bees swarming across our yard, the neighbors yard, and the yard next door. The bees were everywhere flitting around anywhere from ground level to 5" off the ground.

The previous week, I noticed what appeared to be ant hills in the yard - about 100 little mounds of dirt with wide openings. Due to the previous owners neglect of the yard, it is mainly dirt and moss. One of my projects this spring is to actually grow a nice lawn back there so we can enjoy the yard.
I thought ants would be a set back, but I was not prepared for bees. Did I mention there were hundreds of them???

Not an ant hill

The bees seemed very docile and did not pay much attention to me, so I still went about making Shaddy's scratching pad (see other blog entry.)


I then jumped on Google to find out what I could about these pesky invaders. First search - Wasps. Very Dangerous. Ugh! I studdied the pictures and decided they were not wasps or yellowjackets. Whew!

Second search - Could be honey bees from the look... But honey bees only make one nest if they nest in the ground. These bees have holes everywhere! So honey bees are out.




Digger bee

 

Third search - Digger/miner bees. AHA! Thats's it! I finally knew what I was dealing with - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthophorini. They are docile bees that dig individual holes in the ground ansd bring back pollen and necture to feed their larva. They are usually out in the spring but only for a few weeks. No one seems sure what they do after that. The thought is they lay their eggs i nthe ground where theysit for another fall/winter to hatch again the next year.





Bee's eye view of the yard



             Now how to deal with them?
Well I could try the Texas method - actually found in one forum - wait until night and pour gas in the holes.
Set up a long fuse, light, and watch what happens. Tempting but no.

I could do nothing - Forums say they will go away in a few weeks after the larva hatch... but they will be back next year. not sure about this one. With a little one on the way, I want my yard as a playground for the little one and not for bees.

I even emailed the Philly Bee Keepers Guild - Yes there is such a thing. They promptly called me and said while they have never heard of a swarm that large (it covers 3 freaking yards!), they were not sure what to do. The guy insisted they were beautiful to watch and to just let nature take its course. Freaking hippie.



Digger bee digging

  

Then I talked to our attached neighor Francis. She said last year it happened but with waaaaay less bees. She gave me an old school recipe to keep bugs and things away.
1 capful lemon scented ammonia

1 cup water

1 capful mint mouthwash

A squirt of lemon scented liquid soap

Apply with a hose attachement at night after the bees go in for the night.

Update:
While I was going to use Francis' approach tonight, I just talked to Mike McGrath, host of WHYY-FM's You Bet Your Garden and he set me straight. whyy.org/91FM/ybyg/index.html
Digger bees do not have stingers. They will go away in 2 weeks or so. After that, reset the lawn and grow grass to 3". Always mow with a sharp blade. And do not harm the bees.
Digger bees are the first pollenators of the year and are responsible for the cherry blossoms, peaches, and much more. They are also some of the last native bees left so you should not harm them.
Also - wasps sting, bees do not (much).

I feel much better after talking to him... but I still hate bees.