Anyone use mason bees?

[Ridgerunner]

I know how you feel about the bug truck, but that's one of the reasons we can live in the southern US. In some areas I'd hate to go to a little league game or barbeque outside if they didn't spray. I think malaria and yellow fever have been eradicated in the US but we still have encephylitis. Probably some other mosquito-transmitted diseases too.

I did not see many bug-eating songbirds in my backyard when I lived in Metairie although I kept reading about the purple martins at the Causeway. I figured it was the spray.

There was an article in "Countryside" magazine recently about mason bees. I don't have that article handy as we subscribe through the public library. I don't remember where the guy lived but he kept his mason bees in straws in the refrigerator during the winter.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

Supposedly, if you give them a house (or tubes) they will come to you . . . they are supposed to be native to North America. They are early pollinators . . . they quit for the season about mid-summer here.

If you want to just attract more bees but not necessarily house them, you can design a bee attractive garden . . . I posted a thread about this last year.

 

[obsessed]

Thanks DrakeMaiden. I am so going to check that thread out.

 

[chills]

thanks havi for starting this ..
and thanks for the link and photo Jenny ..
i didnt know you could do bees on a small scale .. living in the city i thought i was left out for bee keeping ..
well i'm off to do more research ..
thank you

 

[big brown horse]

I have a whole condo full of mason bee cocoons. Each straw sized hole can house up to 4 mason bee larva. They are the early pollinators and come earlier than the honey or bumble bees. For an orchard say, this is very important, early pollination equals higher yield. I have a little book on them, it came with our house, as the former owners of this little orchard were very fond of mason bees and did absolutely nothing else to the trees except prune them...completely organic yield this way.

They can sting I read but it is very, very rare and they are very dosile. My condo is made up of about 6 different foot long 4x4's hanging to face the south, no shade. The condos are attached to a large board with a little roof. Each foot long 4x4 has about 200 holes drilled into the wood about 3 inches deep. The holes are the diamater of a Mc. Donald's drinking straw. We have probably 1200 holes in all. Not all of them are filled but about 90%. I think they can be dusted with D.E. to keep the mites they get down. I keep bird netting around them so the birds won't eat them.

We had temps in the single digits this winter and weeks with sow on the ground and they still emerged from their cocoons.

 

[big brown horse]

One more thing, they don't produce honey like a bee. I wasn't sure if y'all knew that or not, just thought I'd throw it out there.

 

[ninny]

One more thing, they don't produce honey like a bee. I wasn't sure if y'all knew that or not, just thought I'd throw it out there.

oh thats a bummer I never heard of them. I would rather have honey but if i could keep both kinds theyed be worth a look.

Could they safely be kept around the house for a small orchard? I am nerouvs about mowing the trees and getting attacked. I also dont want the dogs getting stung.

What would be the best way to keep them through a Illinois winter?

Thanks!

 

[big brown horse]

One more thing, they don't produce honey like a bee. I wasn't sure if y'all knew that or not, just thought I'd throw it out there.

oh thats a bummer I never heard of them. I would rather have honey but if i could keep both kinds theyed be worth a look.

Could they safely be kept around the house for a small orchard? I am nerouvs about mowing the trees and getting attacked. I also dont want the dogs getting stung.

What would be the best way to keep them through a Illinois winter?

Thanks!

They don't sting. (If they do it is ultra rare.) My apple and pear orchard is 10 feet from my back porch and bedroom window. I haven't had one single problem.

I have a book about them, so ask away and I will look up the answer.

ETA We had a winter that reached below 9 degrees and there was snow on the ground for 2 weeks and I still had them emerge from their cocoons.

 

[ninny]

Okay Whats the book called

 

[big brown horse]

Okay Whats the book called

The Orchard Mason Bee The Life History-Biology-Propagation and use of a truly belevolent and Beneficial Insect
by Brian L. Griffin

It is a small book about 70 pages long. Good luck in finding it or one like it!