orchard mason bees

Last year during the big bee hive collaspe issue, I bought an orchard mason bee setup for about 75 bucks. I installed it right before I starting planting my yard with a ton of edibles. Well, I never saw those suckers again after they came out of dormancy. I noticed this winter that the tubes I left on their wood block were full again. They build little mud tubes in the winter. I just went outside and my loquat and lemon trees were absolutely covered in them. I think I started with 30-40 bees but I must have hundreds of them now. The great thing is that they are solitary bees so they dont have a hive. They arent destructive and they prefer to flee than sting since they dont have a hive to protect. I thought I had just thrown away my money up until now. I am very happy!!!!

Here is a critter doing his thing.

Here is their block. I think they reproduce in there and hibernate.
They must be nesting in another location as well because there are so many of them.


This message was edited Feb 13, 2009 4:46 PM

I have mine in the cannisters with the cardboard tubes. They're very visible and busy in the spring, then they die off by summer. They've multiplied prodigiously.

Lois,
Do you have to bring the canisters indoors somewhat for wintertime? What direction is a good facing for the canisters? Also, is it necessary to buy from eastern or midwestern sources to get the right strain? Do predatory wasps cause a problem? All these questions have stopped me from getting some.
I think you get 5 or 6 maximum per tube.

I bring them in because I don't want them hatching too early. I have the cannisters facing south, in a little house box that fits two.

I got one batch that turned out not to be orchard mason bees but some other species of mason bees that look a lot more like honeybees. I ordered a second batch from Knox Cellars, which seems to be the source for a lot of vendors.

There used to be some sources here in the midwest, but they no longer seem in business, as far as I can tell.


I've seen very little evidence of the wasps - maybe in two out of 60 tubes. I was thinking of covering the cannisters with nylon knee-highs, to keep them out, but I didn't get around to it. Certaintly I've got a lot of bees, so they haven't cut down on the numbers.

I think a couple of tubes were colonized by some other kind of wasps, too, but they don't bother the bees. You can tell by the way the mud is smoothed or not.

My block is south facing and gets sun in the winter and only morning sun in the summer since it is under an eave on the roof. I have never seen wasps in there but frankly, I had never seen the bees either. I just see which tubes they mudded up. I leave mine out all winter cause it really doesnt get that cold here.

You probably can't see the parastic wasps flying around, they're tiny.

I found some in dead tubes.


You can see a photo here http://davesgarden.com/guides/articles/view/1050/

Fantastic article.

Well I guess these are not Mason Bees.
I made this and hung it up last spring.
Think I should clean out the holes and start a new this spring ?

It's hard to see, but some of them could be.

See what comes out.

I'll keep an eye on it

http://www.audubonmagazine.org/audubonathome/audubonathome0601.html is the link for building a mason bee box. I also got an article for the NC extension service which is the one I am using. There are native mason bees already around here and the NC article tells you about what to do with the box- other than pointing the holes SE it's a no-brainer. I didn't think to take a photo but I will and post it tomorrow.

NC article said to put the box up in Feb, don't know why, but I did.

Paul

I builded mine from 4,,, 2x4x12" because my brad-point bit was not long enough.
Made a template for the holes from 1/4" stock and drilled through each 2x4
Then backed it with 1/4 stock to seal the back holes.
I still have many empty holes so I'll leave it out and watch. ^_^

Here are the photos of the one I finished and the other I am building for my next door neighbor

Box for neighbor, under construction.

so...you can build the bee house and they will come? You don't have to order them? :)

Daylilly2006:
My NC extension service booklet said the "native eastern species of Orchard Mason Bee will nest in holes drilled in a wooden block". Did you look at the Audubon link I posted above? I think you should ask your extension service - it seems that mason bees are all the rage now because of honey bee hive collapse problems. I have no idea if there are native mason bees in AZ, but there may be other pollinators that fill that niche. Your tax dollars are paying the extension service people's salaries. You can just google mason bees AZ and see.
good luck,
Paul

OK, I guess I'm bored- here is what happens when you do this : "You can just google mason bees AZ and see."

Orchard mason bees occur naturally in Arizona and throughout the United States. In nature they nest in beetle galleries in wood. Unlike carpenter bees ...
ag.arizona.edu/pubs/insects/ahb/inf29.

Thanks!!! You do good work :)