If you read our CARPENTER BEE CONTROL ARTICLE, you’ll learn they don’t typically attack. In fact, only the female can sting and it would be quite unusual for you to encounter more than one at a time. I’m actually thinking you might have BUMBLE BEES, which closely resemble Carpenter Bees, and are more likely to sting in numbers. The good news is regardless of which species you actually have, both can be treated by dusting the column with the DRIONE DUST and a HAND DUSTER we have featured in our carpenter bee article.

At this point I suggest you observe the column from afar to see where the bees are entering their nest. If it’s carpenter bees, there will be holes drilled which are most likely being used for nests. This would explain the sawdust you found. But I have seen Bumble Bees use such columns for nesting and I’ve even seen bumble bees use carpenter bee holes as a way to enter the void so again, it could be either. Many times the wood used to make these columns isn’t that thick and when carpenter bees drill, they will inadvertently drill all the way through a piece and end up abandoning the hole altogether. Carpenter bees don’t like holes that empty out into an empty space but bumble bees love this. And bumble bees typically like to use small holes as a way to enter a nest cavity so this might be what you have going on in your column. But it really doesn’t matter; if you dust the hole with Drione, you’ll surely get either species. And all it will take is 3-5 squirts of the Drione. In most cases the nest will shut down in a day if it’s hit thoroughly. Now if you see activity a day after you treat, that means you didn’t use enough and will need to dust again.

Now if you can’t find an entrance hole, it’s entirely possible the bees are entering the column via a small gap or crack in the frame. I’ve seen this happen many times; even though both bees are seemingly “thick”, they can slide into some tight cracks. In these cases, dusting the entire gap will yield the same results as treating a specific hole. It will require more product and more effort to make sure you get them all but in the end, the Drione will render the nest useless.

Lastly, the best time to treat will be in the evening, close to dark, to insure the bees are both back at the nest and not active. This will help reduce the chance of confrontation and being stung.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Carpenter Bee Article:  http://www.carpenterbees.com/carpenter-bee-control

Bumble Bee Article:  http://www.bugspray.com/articles99/bumblebees.html

Drione Dust:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page256.html

Hand Duster:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page258.html

Bee sawdust is being generated by the carpenter bees as they chew through the wood of your porch. This can quickly be stopped by spraying it with the CYPERMETHRIN we have featured in our CARPENTER BEE CONTROL ARTICLE.

For bee nests which are active – the ones where you see bees entering and exiting – you will need to treat with some DRIONE DUST. This will get both the live stages and any that are buried in the nest developing. Be sure to plug the nests with a 1/2″ CORK to seal the dust up so it can last as long as possible.