Carpenter bees take a seat on Amanda McNulty's porch

Hello, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension and Making It Grow. On our front porch we have a bench that we call “The Poor Pew.” It’s a rustic, hand hewn, wooden pew, from a church in Anderson, put together with now rusty penny nails. When the best dog in the world, Blue, aka "Blueberry," was still a pup, he chewed off a good bit of the right arm rest. This year it’s being invaded by carpenter bees. Female carpenter bees chew channels in wood, stuffing them full of pollen for the eggs they lay to eat until they reach maturity. Male bees will buzz you and try to scare you away from the hard working females, but, male bees don’t have stingers and are are just puffing out their chests and putting on a good show.