They are definitely bumble bees. I'm just not completely sure what type. For a while, I thought they were Golden Northern Bumble Bee. Now that I've been watching them for a few days, I think they are Common Eastern Bumble Bees. We've had yellowjacket nests in the past and don't mess around with them. They almost had my husband in the hospital. When he accidentally disturbed their nest, the YJs chased him down the street and stung him 14 times. He was on Benadryl for 2 weeks following. These fellas are about 12 mm long and kind of chubby looking. They have a large furry black head, a yellow furry thorax with a big black spot on the top, and a black furry abdomen. They have two rather see through black wings which the fold overlapping on their back when they are mumbling around on my flowers. They also have black legs on which you can see big sacks of pollen when they are returning to the nest. And, as I said, they are really quite docile. The only time we upset them was when my husband pushed the lawnmower right over the top of their nest. Other than that, you can sit on the ground right next to them and watch them go in and out for hours and they won't bother you a bit. But at this point we are VERY CAREFUL not to tromp on their entrance holes and I won't let the children play anywhere near the nest. (The dog is, of course, more difficult to control - the big goofball.) What I keep wishing for is a nice hungry skunk. The children are generally allergic (cats, dogs, rabbits, pollen, nuts, milk, wheat, etc.), but neither has ever been stung. Unfortunately, we didn't have them tested for bee sting allergies when we had them tested. So at this point, it's an unknown. We do have epi-pens which I carry around for "just in case." About the Rotenone . . . I read online that it is not toxic to bees except in combination with pyrethrum. Here is the link: http://extoxnet.orst.edu/pips/rotenone.htm The Rotenone/Pyrethrins mixture that Bonide sells is a liquid spray. If someone pours this liquid down their hole at night, won't that cause them to come out in attack mode? I think I'm just a little confused as to logistics. I think I'll try the water/hose method first. It would be optimal to just convince them to move house.

I would love to have more pollinators and I garden organically and plant specifically to attract them. I haven't had a problem with Ground dwelling bees at this point. Just a few paper wasps that try to move in to the underside of the canopy over our front door every year. I keep my eye out for them and knock it down while it is still small and they move on. And I've been gardening here 30+ years. It's pretty sad that there aren't enough pollinators even when I am offering an environment that is pollinator friendly. I have berry bushes in the yard and strawberries, that are not developing berries from all the flowers on them. Still, I remember my brother running over a bee hive with the lawnmower when we were kids. A very unpleasant experience that can effect the way you feel about bees for a long time. So, I can understand the concern people have for colonies in their lawn, which you cannot avoid. I wonder why they chose the lawn? Is it because there is a bare patch or what? Is there a way to make your lawn a less hospitable site for a nest? Jessica, I love your idea about keeping the site wet because they like dry. I guess I would try running the sprinkler constantly to see if that would get them to move on. I've done that with ant colonies and it worked well. I guess there is no way of relocating them either? Another question I have, for those who see a nest of bees as a challenge and are willing to poison them. I wonder if you have ever tried to grow food? I don't think most people in general are aware of how challenged our food supply is and how much of a problem that could end up being with dwindling numbers of bees. I've actually come across an organization that is exploring some kind of 'food substitute' and calling it 'Soylent Green' based on a movie of the same name. That concerns me, that there are people who have recognized how bad things could get and now consider it a real possibility that we won't have food in the supermarkets. Or be able to grow it ourselves. Something to think about.

Hi Tony, I'm in Innisfil Ontario north of Toronto near Barrie. Just around the corner is Dickey Bee Honey and another beekeeper is just south of here on the way to Bradford. Even our mayor is a beekeeper! I had a friend who had a couple hives as a hobby - and I've been to a bed and breakfast near Peterborough that is a honey farm - Hunter Farm. I watched Ruth centrifuge the honey. But what do you do with it all?? You'd have to sell it, and I don't want to compete business-wise with my neighbours. Although I do own and operate a grocery delivery business and have been asked for the unpasteurized honey, recommended for health. When my friend tried to turn his unpasteurized honey hobby into a business (we were in a government sponsored business start-up program), he ran into all sorts of problems - apparently he could sell the honey off his driveway or at a stall he himself operated, but ran into trouble trying to sell through a second party - other retailers. Have you any information on why this may be the case? And besides honey, can you make other products if you're a beekeeper - can one make honey 'sugar' for example? How can one differentiate honey from others? Is it worth keeping just a handful of hives or is that not cost-effective? Regarding what kind of wasps/hornets my 'bees' were - they had longer wings but not long narrow bodies. I assumed wasps all have dangly bits hanging off them and hornets are long and pointy and yellowjackets are tiny. Thats about all I thought I knew ;) Thanks for your replies! Lisa

There are several types of Bee that nest in the ground, Called Solitary Bees, no hives, no queen, no workers, and produce no honey, as do the European Honey Bee and the Bumblebee. The ground bees often build cones with the soil they excavate when building their tunnels. Reminds me of a minature Crayfish(crawfish,crawdad) cone you would find in the swamps. They are necessary pollinators and along with the Bumblebees probably did an excellent job for many eons, before the importation of the European Honey Bee, which became a vital addition to the winged pollinators for the expansion of the American agriculture industry. (Food Basket of the World, they say). The European Honey Bee population has met with some formidable obstacles in recent years, first it was the mites that infested their hives and spread disease, bacterial infection of their larvae and now, Total Colony Collapse, where the workers leave the hives and never return. What happens to them, has not been determined. It is estimated that 95-98% of their World-wide wild populations have been eliminated by disease and pesticides. The Africanized strain(hybrid?) is not immune. either. Food(hopefully) for thought. :Rb