Identifying Borers in Stored Squash and Pumpkins

Sawdust Piles and Deep Holes: What’s Inside Your Cured Cucurbits?

Finding light sawdust piles and deep holes in stored squash suggests insect activity. Two main candidates fit the evidence.

Prime Suspects

• Carpenter bees – Bore into wood and occasionally thick-skinned vegetables, leaving coarse sawdust. They don’t consume the flesh; they nest.
• Squash vine borers – Typically attack stems and vines in the field, but larvae can bore into fruit if stems are unavailable.

Why Carpenter Bees Are Likely

The absence of larvae in the cut fruit and the sawdust trail point to carpenter bees. They create clean, round entrance holes and provision nests with pollen, not fruit flesh.

Next Steps

1. Inspect nearby wooden structures (fence posts, sheds) for similar holes—carpenter bees prefer wood.
2. If bees are confirmed, they are pollinators; consider leaving them or providing alternative nesting blocks.
3. For squash vine borers, future prevention includes row covers, stem wrapping with foil, and BT applications.

Proper curing (dry, ventilated, off the ground) reduces all pest access to stored produce.