More Bee things

[Palustris]

Put this in here rather than Pest and Diseases. We have a problem with a set of small ish black bees with White bottoms. They have set up home under the tiles of the roof in an area where there is no access for us except by removing the roof tiles or the bedroom ceiling. You can hear them buzzing in the bedroom and even worse, chewing the roofing timbers.  How the heck do I get rid of them?

[Palustris]

[Robert_Brenchley]

Most likely they're mining bees which nest in hollow stems and the like; they can adapt to narrow spaces under tiles and the like quite easily. If they're carpenter bees they'll be chewing the wood away, but it doesn't sound like it, and they only tunnel into wood which is already rotten. They only have one generation a year, so they'll build their nests and disappear.

[Palustris]

How long will that take? The noise of them buzzing away under the tiles is very disconcerting and a bit worrying.

[Robert_Brenchley]

A few weeks, probably.

[Palustris]

Thanks. I will try and catch one and get a picture  so we can id them properly. They were quit last night so if they keep schtum they can stay, if not........................!

[GoodePaul]

Hi, my partner and I are members of Yorkshire Wildlife Trust (Bradford area) and we are currently promoting bumblebee conservation.... came across this site which sells native bumblebees to gardeners and growers and thought it might be a useful reference:

http://buzzorganics.co.uk/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=12

sorts two problems out in one go i.e. pollinating and bumblebee conservation which must be a good thing
By the way, these people also have quite a lot of interesting stuff to offer gardeners and allotment holders.