Carpenter Bee Favorite Wood

Wood decks overhangs and other exposed woods on houses are a prime target for the carpenter bee.

Carpenter bee favorite wood. Why carpenter bees are considered pests in early spring the female excavates a perfectly round 1 2 inch in diameter by using her strong mandibles to break up and pull out the wooden pieces. Carpenter bees prefer weathered or unfinished wood. This type of pollen gathering is called buzz pollination. Appealing to carpenter bees half inch holes are drilled into a wood box at an upward angle that prevents direct sunlight from shining in.

Using their powerful thoracic muscles carpenter bees sonicate the dry pollen grains out of the flower s anthers. The most vulnerable areas are windowsills railings decks fences doors eaves and wooden lawn furniture. A clear tapered bottle is attached to a hole in the bottom of the box. Paint or varnish exposed wood surfaces around your home to make them less attractive to the bees.

Carpenter bees are excellent pollinators of eggplant tomato and other vegetables and flowers. You can differentiate the two by examining the dorsal upper side of the abdomen. To create their nests carpenter bees bore round holes into softwood which they then build out with expanding tunnels and galleries or brood chambers carpenter bees prefer softwoods such as cedar redwood and soft pine that is at least 2 inches thick. Once the carpenter bees have entered the box the hole at the bottom of the box is the obvious exit.

How to control carpenter bees because of their extensive nesting chambers effective carpenter bee control means reaching these offenders inside and out and preventing new infestations of wood damaging bees. Although they have a reputation for being pest resistant unpainted or stained redwood cedar and cypress wood like shingles and siding are also favorite materials for the carpenter bee. Carpenter bees genus xylocopa are solitary bees that burrow into wood. Weathered unpainted or unsealed wood is a favorite carpenter bee target.

Large carpenter bees excavate dry unpainted and weathered wooden objects such as the following. Doors windowsills roof eaves railings decks untreated poles fences wooden lawn furniture. This means composites like trex as well as soft lumber products including pressure treated pine pt douglas fir and western red cedar.