Insects

[digger]

Today i have been looking at my roses and i have noticed some notches missing from some of the leaves first i thought vine weevil but now after doing some research i think it could be the leaf cutter bees, if so they are very welcome to cut some leaves but how do i know for certain that bees have done it? i found yesterday a really big bumble bee in the back garden it was big really big, so i have been looking at the bee house on complete gardens web site one is for solitary bees and the other is for bumble bees, so my second question is do i need both bee houses? and if i get the bee houses how do i know if bees have moved in? i realise that i would see them flying in and out but how do i know that bees will move in in the first place? we made a hedge hog house but frogs moved into it so we bought a "proper" hedge hog house we kept away so as not to disturb a hibernating hedge hog but although we have hedgehogs in the garden they are not living in the house we bought them, do hedge hogs live in the house all year round just leving at night then coming home in the day? and again how do i know for certain that a hedge hog has moved into the house? i would like to get the bee houses but i am concerned that they will just sit there without any bees moving in or can you buy baby bees?

[Neil Bromhall]

Hi Digger
I think leaf cutter bees are great. I'll send some photos
There are two different types of holes cut in the leaf. The slightly elongated ones are used to line the chamber and the circular ones are use to close the end.
My rose leaves were a real favorite this year with these solitarey bees. The leaves need to be just right as the bees bend the leaves fir lining the chamber

[Paul Narramore]

Well well well, I seem to learn something new every day. One of my roses, the one I've raised from seed brought back from the Rockie Mountains, has circular holes cut out of the leaves, so THIS is what has caused it.

To discover more about solitary bees -

http://www.moraybeekeepers.co.uk/solitary_bees.htm

[Miranda]

Someone sent me this beautiful photo of a leafcutter bee in action: http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y295/miranda_uk/garden/leafcutterflying.jpg - they use the bits of leaf to plug the holes in their nests.

[digger]

Yes leaf cutter bees when i first saw the notches i thought it was the adult vine weevil but i read about other possibilities and it all directs me to think it's leaf cutter bees so i am happy to leave them to it.

[Neil Bromhall]

You can see the different cuts they've made in the leaves. The circular ones are the 'end caps' to seal in the pollen and egg - which develops in to a larva which eats the pollen

I have a solitary bee box which the bees find perfect. The woodpeckers have also found the bee box and predate the developing bees.

It's an amazing world right in our back gardens

[digger]

The leaves are almost identical to mine but with regard to the bee house did you just plonk it in the garden and the bees found it ?

[Neil Bromhall]

Hi Digger,
We can all do our bit to help wildlife and I've noticed that some companies are exploiting peoples good intentions by jumping on the band wagon and produce some gimmick products that either don't help or are made using rainforest timber. I therefore like to research the products and test them.
The Company I think are good and I use are Wildlifeworld.
I tested the solitary bee house and also one that uses hollow bamboo.
The bees seem to like both. In the photo a red masonry bee is using the solitary bee house and she lines the chamber with mud
I've found that being positioned about six foot off the ground and in full sun works well.
The problem with the bamboo insect house is woodpeckers can easily pull the bamboo out and leave them in a heap on the ground. I simply put them back in place
I've noticed that the masonry bees take up residence first(July) and the leaf cutter bees are about out in September & August.

[Paul Narramore]

I now know that the damage on one of mt roses is not being caused by Leafcutter Bees, because I caught the culprit this afternoon. I had my doubts as the holes in the leaves were not perfect circles, some were, most weren't. Then today I found this small, thin, green caterpillar chomping away. I've looked it up and it seems to be Sawfly Larvae. Leaf green caterpillar, 3/4" long. (Deceased):mad:

[digger]

You did well to spot the culprit Paul. I shall keep an eye on my roses, are leaf cutter bees exclusively using rose leaves?

[Neil Bromhall]

Almost any leaf will do but they have to be just the right thickness, weight and bendability.
As well as roses in my garden the leaf cutter bees also like my mock Acasia leaves