Mason bees could be the most remarkable insects in the garden . Native to most parts of the country , they are quite passive ; the males have no cut , and the female sting only when badly threatened . They are major pollinator ; some say one James Neville Mason bee does the body of work of 500 honey bees . Unlike honey bees that only carry pollen on their hind leg , stonemason bees are cover in it as they do their workplace collect pollen . Less than 10 mason bees can fully cross-pollinate one 15 - human foot fruit Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree . Mason bees have mostly flown under my garden radio detection and ranging , but as presently as I begin canvas them , I fell in love . I want to see what I could do to be a friend to the humble and splendid mason bee .
The life of a mason bee could be the plot of land of an opera house ; they live short , solitary lives of service to the next genesis . If you ’re a male , your sole function is to multiply . You are born before the females and can often be distinguish waiting outside the nest for a first mate to emerge . Once you have done your duty , you die . If you are a female person , you are have a bun in the oven to make babies . The process begins once you emerge from your cocoon . Once the deed is done , you disappear for a few days while your ovary senesce . Then begins the strenuous process of many trips of pile up mud to establish the next , gathering pollen and ambrosia , and then laying your eggs . shortly you will also be dead . But in a matter of a month or two , you make an enormous mark as you pollinate many blossoms and work up a brood for the following yr .
Mason bees build their nests in narrow ( around ¼-inch in diameter ) tubing - like opening like hollow stems and burrowed mess in the wood from other insects . Their nest is an architectural exploit . They seal the ends of their nest and build the chambers within from the mud they collect ; thus , the name mason bee . In each chamber , they vomit ambrosia and deposit pollen they ’ve carried to create what is called a loaf of bread . The ball is laid in the loaf of bread , and the bulwark is built with mud to seal it off . Each egg has its own larval jail cell , and the entire involvement is seal at the entranceway . The social system resemble one of those compartmentalized oral contraceptive pill boxes with the Clarence Day of the week on each segment .
Mason bee are intelligent . distaff egg are laid at the back of the nest , where they will be safe and less vulnerable to predators . Male eggs are laid near the front of the nest .
In a distich of weeks , the larva emerges and feed off the pollen and nectar loaf . When the loaf is gone , the larva forms a protective cocoon around itself . After several months of dormancy , the larva develops into a bee but rest in the cocoon throughout the winter . The stonemason bee will emerge from its cocoon when daytime highs average in the mid-50s several years in a row .
The bee house : to be or not to be
How could one not want to help this unknown grinder of the garden ? Bee houses are fiddling human - made social system designed to give the mason bee ( and other solitary bees , like the leaf ground ball ) a place to progress their nest . Bee houses are , in a word , cute , and can be found all over these days in computer memory and online . Pollinator partisan are clamour for them . The panel seems to be out for pollinator expert .
Our hearts are certainly in the right place when we set out to put up a home for these highly beneficial members of the garden community . We desire to be a part of the root , plus Alfred Edward Woodley Mason bee near our fruit Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree can mean more fruit . Many of the ready - made bee houses are reportedly not right for the bees . Nurseries , garden centers , and peculiarity shop are good source ; stores , where you may also bribe dishes , candles and dress , may not be . Some houses can even be harmful as they lure the bee away from natural habitats only to provide a home plate that puts them at risk of mites and other vulture . Note : this can also happen in natural options like hole in logs , and plant stems from the previous class .
If you build it , will they do ? I confess — I am new to the world of the mason bee and the bee house . My cognition on the theme is limited to my inquiry ( a gratifying process ) . I ’ve adjudicate it ’s worth embarking on the journeying of creating a bee family for my Modern best friend in the garden and making it as safe and hospitable for the bees as potential .
My DIY Bee House
When work up your own theater , there are a few must - practice that reportedly many of the commercially produced houses do not postdate :
The basic structure
I work up my house using a circular adage , a drill , and basic carpentry . My DIY shibboleth is to do your inquiry , do your best , and not get capture up in perfectionism . Getting something done is more important than being perfect . Please brush up my programme , reduplicate what you like , and experiment with craft your design . extra selective information and account of incline George Mason bee are endless online .
The base construction of my house is a aggregate of five board , ¾-inch wooden-headed , in the follow proportion :
I progress a box with the 12 x 7″ and 10 x 7″ display panel , using 1 ¼-inch coated fuck for weather condition resistance . I attach the cap with 1 ½-inch shag . I pre - drilled pilot holes for the screws to help keep the woodwind from splitting and to go in easy .
The roof is attached by have sex the two angle ending of the 9 x 7.5″ add-in to forge a V. I then set the inserted cinque onto the top of the box and screwed the bottom edges into the box . Next , I screwed three 10″ long boards of diverge widths onto the back and cut a triangular piece to cover the back of the “ noggin . ”
A carpentry promissory note : I ’ve build a wide-eyed homemade jig to make screwing two Natalie Wood piece together to form a right angle soft . Mine is just a piece of 1×6′ Sir Henry Joseph Wood screwed into a length of 1×10′ forest .
Filling and hanging the box
Filling the box seat with nesting textile is the most crucial step in the process . Mason bee draw close tubes are readily available by doing an internet search . Tubes for George Mason bees require to be at least ¼-inch and no larger than 5/8 - in . They must also be six inch long . They should not be shaping . I buy tubing with a replaceable intimate lining as the cleanliness of the menage is of the essence .
you could also practise ¼ and 5/8 - inch kettle of fish in wood block that not all bee enthusiasts are in love with , but they look very cool . A bee house with a variety of materials is a good look ! I advocate a 10 - column inch long drill bit for drilling into the wood . practice six - column inch farsighted nesting holes is not unproblematic , but you could do it if you check two or three time per drill to clean out shavings . Once you ’ve drill the kettle of fish , reinsert the drill bit and run it in and out a few fourth dimension to ensure the sides are entirely suave . you’re able to also insert paper tubes into the drilled hole , but I am trying it without them . A segment of tree branch is a natural and attractive addition . I used my small galvanizing chain saw to edit a six - column inch distance , then drilled hole in it . I used boxelder , which is a softer wood and easy to drill into .
Joe Pye weed is one of the plants bees will lie their egg in the shank of . I harvested as many stems as potential from last year ’s increase , garnish them to six inches , and placed a bundle in the house .
Bee business firm need to be stably fall at around six to seven foot off the ground . A Dixie - facing location will serve the sun keep the warm over the wintertime . A+ if you may place it under an eave for add trade protection .
overwinter the loge of bee baby
Many bee enthusiast assemble tubes in the fall and overwinter them in a protected area . If you choose to go this manner , there is a mickle of information out there to guide you . I am give out with the easier approach and letting the house overwinter where it hangs and then placing it in an issue box when temperatures are draw close an average day highschool of 55 . I ’ll localize the bee house in a composition board box with a one - inch hole cut in one end . The bee will see the illumination and fly out but will not return . Once the vacuum tube are empty , I ’ll strip the boxful and rehang it to repeat the outgrowth .
Cleaning the household is an important step in the process . The paper tubes will be replaced . From what I ’ve take , people will clean holes in wood with compressed air and the flyspeck brushing used to clean out reusable straws and H2O bottleful . It seems the ultimate would be to have two firm , with one quick to hang as soon as the first goes into the egression corner .
I likely hung my corner too late this year to get any nesters , though I have spotted the bees pull together nectar on a spiraea shrub . Sometimes , the bees will not nuzzle in the house or outlast the winter . Some intimate moving the theater to a protect spot , like the service department , for the wintertime . Like so many horticulture activities , I will see how it goes and at the very least , I will hopefully give a nesting position to a few of these marvel of the garden .
Minneapolis - base Eric Johnson blogs atgardendrama.wordpress.com .
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