I saw a faux "beehive" in a gardening catalog that is used to trick bees into thinking there is already a bee colony/hive in a certain area. Bees are territorial and won't nest where another hive is. You can use this under a porch roof, in a shed, or playhouse, etc. Anywhere bees would nest that you don't want them.
So, being cheap, I mean thrifty, I made my own for almost nothing and it worked! Take a gallon plastic milk jug and poke two holes in the bottom about two inches apart for a wire clothes hanger to hang it. I used newspaper strips to make paper-mache with cornstarch and water. I took the milk jug and sort of squished it to make it more of a hive shape, more oval-y. I cut the handle off. Take a wire hanger and open it up straight. Make a "u" shape on one end to thread through the two holes on the the bottom of the jug. Thread that curved end of the hanger through the bottom for your hanger. Dip the strips of newspaper in the cornstarch/water mix. Squeeze some of the excess goop off and put them all around the jug covering every part - just all over in any direction. You can cover the cap area of the jug or leave it uncovered as I did. Hang it up outside to dry (it may drip).
When dry, paint it with cheapo craft paint in tan and a darker brown color. Swirl the paint around making it just random shades of light and dark brown. Let that dry and then hang up where you want it.
I hung mine under a patio roof and I have had no bees so far since spring started. We did have a small bees nest that was started very small. My husband got rid of it before we hung this up and I have had NO bees nests since. I see a bee every now and then snooping around but they do not nest. I don't know why it works. They say the bees think it's another colony's hive and they stay away. Mine has worked and saved me the $25 the one I saw in a catalog cost. It doesn't look as nice, mind you, but it works and it was thrifty.
By Janine from Reading, PA
This is a great, and thrifty, idea. Can't help wondering whether it would work also if adapted to a faux hornets nest, or wasp nest. Anybody have an opinion about this?
Do you have to do the papier mache? Could you just crunch-up the jug and paint it? Hmmmmm, tell you what - i have a jug in the kitchen, lemme give it a try and I'll get back to you, ok?
Why the hell would you want to scare the bees away! Bees are a gardener's best friend. I hope you scared them away enough to send them up here to Michigan, we need them badly. Right now all we have is a few wasps and some bumble bees as pollinators.
Thank you for that idea. A student gave me a pretty amber colored glass beehive whatchamacallit as a gift. Not knowing what it was other than a pretty glass beehive I was told you hang it somewhere you don't want bees. It lures them in but they can't get out. I haven't yet grasped that thought, how you (a bee) fly into the hole but are not smart enough to fly back out. But some how it's suppose to work. However, it's been setting as a decoration in the house because I can't bare the thought of killing my little buddies. I purposely grow plants to invite them into my vegetable garden to help pollinate, so then the plant will produce, so then I have something to harvest, which makes it delightful to cook fresh vegetables for in the long run my family and I have a satisfied belly and are eating healthy.
