Today was an exciting day!
You’ve probably heard a million times not to do fall “clean up” and to wait until later in the spring to cut down last year’s dead plant stalks. “Save the bees” is the rallying cry from nature enthusiasts everywhere. I’ve heard them loud and clear and was happy to obey.
But it wasn’t until today when I saw with my own eyes exactly what all those memes are about.
It was the first warm and sunny 60-degree day in central Illinois. After a brutal cold spell it felt so good to get out and just walk around the yard a bit. I would stop every once in a while and stare at some stalks hoping the mystery of the overwintering bees would be revealed. Then I’d get distracted by an interesting bug or a bit of green and wander off.
But then… I saw it – a round hole in a broken off purple coneflower (echinacea purpurea) stem. Was this what I was looking for? Was this the entrance hole to a bee nursery? Looking at it, I thought it might just be the hollow interior. More investigation was needed.
So I very carefully split the stem in half and voila, the middle was filled with larval chambers!!
The best investment I’ve ever made was a little pocket magnifying glass. Not knowing where else to buy them, I bought these through Amazon. You can see them at this LINK. They are 10x magnification and you get four of them for less than $10.
I was enthralled by the detail of the chamber construction and the transparent cellophane wrapping around each individual larva.
I have no idea whatsoever what these will grow up to be – a bee? a wasp? something else? (NOTE: See update at the end about likely identification.) Regardless, I was now feeling bad for having disturbed their home. So before they could fully thaw out I put the two halves of the stem back together and stuck it in the dirt where I found them.
I’ll check on them from time to time, but I have no realistic hope that I’ll be there when they emerge. (Assuming of course my rude literal prying into their nest didn’t doom them.)
When you hear the cries to leave the stems alone, I’ll hope you’ll heed them. Our littlest neighbors will thank you.
Of course, if the stems are in your landscaping, you’ll probably have to do some cleanup at some point. Best practice is to wait until April/May and even then leave about a foot of the old growth standing. If you must cut lower or earlier, gather the stalks and loosely stack them someplace vertically where any winter dwellers can still emerge when it’s time.
UPDATE: Huge shout out to Heather Holm for pointing me in the right direction. She suggests these are likely the larvae of a member of the yellow-faced bee family – Hylaeus.
If you don’t know Heather’s work, you really are missing out. Check out her webpage at www.PollinatorsNativePlants.com. She has several outstanding books on bees, wasps and other pollinators. There is also a calendar of her upcoming events so if you are able to attend in person or via a webinar, don’t miss it!
What a beautiful tribute to the hidden world that surrounds us in nature. Such keen observation it takes to notice such a tiny hole. You helped me become more present to my surroundings when I’m outside! Thank you