RESOURCES
A local source for Mason Bee Houses, Honey Bee Equipment, Workshops, and tools for increasing your self sufficiency: homesteadersemporium.ca
For incredible information about all things Mason Bee and pollinator, including Mason Bee Houses, cocoons and tips: beediverse.com
For a wealth of information about conserving pollinators and other invertebrates, and to sign the pledge to bring back the pollinators: xerces.org
For more information on pollinators, including types of pollinators and what you can plant in your backyard or patio garden to provide forage and habitat: pollinationcanada.ca
To get involved locally with therapeutic, community connected honey beekeeping and urban farming: hivesforhumanity.com
Basic Mason Bee Biology
Blue Orchard Mason Bees are a solitary, annual insect. Although they live in proximity to each other, each adult bee acts autonomously to mate, pollinate flowers, and (in the case of females) prepare nesting sites and lay eggs. The adults are alive and active for only a few months in the spring, generally coinciding with the greatest availability of nectar and pollen-bearing flowers.
Rather than build an elaborate nest, mason bees search for tubular cavities in which to lay their eggs. In rural areas these are often holes left created by tunneling insects, woodpeckers, or hollow plant stems. In urban areas, providing artificial wooden or paper tubes is an effective way to increase available nesting sites. When she finds a suitable tube, the female deposits a ball of pollen at the end and lays an egg. She then seals the egg and pollen with a plug of mud and repeats the process until the tube is filled. A mason bee may lay up to a few dozen eggs each season distributed among several cavities. Mason bees nests are often parasitized by other arthropods, including pollen mites and wasps. In human-provided nests this is managed by designing the nests so that they may be opened, the mason bee cocoons removed, and the nests cleaned before the next season. While these parasites themselves have a place in nature, cleaning the nests in this way is the best practice because it prevents the parasites from predominating in man-made nests that are to be used for many years in an urban environment.
Mason Bee Biology and Nest design
Mason bees look for cavities of around 7-8 mm diameter with a single entrance. Ideal sites will be south- or southeast-facing and protected from rain. A cavity depth of 13-15 cm will generally give the most productive ratio of male to female adult bees. Mason bees prefer porous material that is neither slick (e.g. plastic) nor excessively rough (e.g. splintery wood). The nest should be designed in a way that the nesting cavities or tubes may be opened for cleaning.
Mason Bee Biology and Humans
Mason bees acting autonomously will sometimes be more thorough in pollinating a garden containing a variety of flowers maturing at different times. This is because they tend to visit flowers as they encounter them, rather than responding to the reports of a scout bee (as in the case of honeybee colonies). Mason bees and honeybees both die when they sting. Whereas honeybees may sacrifice their individual lives to sting for the defense of the colony, solitary mason bee with no sisters or queen to defend will almost never sting.
Annual Mason Bee Life-cycle
Spring: adult bees emerge from their cocoons, males first, in early spring. The females mate and search for a suitable nesting site where they will lay and provision their eggs.
Summer: the adult bees die by midsummer. The eggs hatch and the larvae develop into pupae and then cocoons. The immature bees are very fragile at this time.
Fall: the bees are fully developed inside their cocoons and may be handled gently. This is a great time to clean and dry the cocoons and nesting cavities (if reusable cavities are used.)
Winter: the bees are dormant inside their cocoons and may be stored in a cold, safe place (e.g. an unheated garage or refrigerator.)
back to home
A local source for Mason Bee Houses, Honey Bee Equipment, Workshops, and tools for increasing your self sufficiency: homesteadersemporium.ca
For incredible information about all things Mason Bee and pollinator, including Mason Bee Houses, cocoons and tips: beediverse.com
For a wealth of information about conserving pollinators and other invertebrates, and to sign the pledge to bring back the pollinators: xerces.org
For more information on pollinators, including types of pollinators and what you can plant in your backyard or patio garden to provide forage and habitat: pollinationcanada.ca
To get involved locally with therapeutic, community connected honey beekeeping and urban farming: hivesforhumanity.com
Basic Mason Bee Biology
Blue Orchard Mason Bees are a solitary, annual insect. Although they live in proximity to each other, each adult bee acts autonomously to mate, pollinate flowers, and (in the case of females) prepare nesting sites and lay eggs. The adults are alive and active for only a few months in the spring, generally coinciding with the greatest availability of nectar and pollen-bearing flowers.
Rather than build an elaborate nest, mason bees search for tubular cavities in which to lay their eggs. In rural areas these are often holes left created by tunneling insects, woodpeckers, or hollow plant stems. In urban areas, providing artificial wooden or paper tubes is an effective way to increase available nesting sites. When she finds a suitable tube, the female deposits a ball of pollen at the end and lays an egg. She then seals the egg and pollen with a plug of mud and repeats the process until the tube is filled. A mason bee may lay up to a few dozen eggs each season distributed among several cavities. Mason bees nests are often parasitized by other arthropods, including pollen mites and wasps. In human-provided nests this is managed by designing the nests so that they may be opened, the mason bee cocoons removed, and the nests cleaned before the next season. While these parasites themselves have a place in nature, cleaning the nests in this way is the best practice because it prevents the parasites from predominating in man-made nests that are to be used for many years in an urban environment.
Mason Bee Biology and Nest design
Mason bees look for cavities of around 7-8 mm diameter with a single entrance. Ideal sites will be south- or southeast-facing and protected from rain. A cavity depth of 13-15 cm will generally give the most productive ratio of male to female adult bees. Mason bees prefer porous material that is neither slick (e.g. plastic) nor excessively rough (e.g. splintery wood). The nest should be designed in a way that the nesting cavities or tubes may be opened for cleaning.
Mason Bee Biology and Humans
Mason bees acting autonomously will sometimes be more thorough in pollinating a garden containing a variety of flowers maturing at different times. This is because they tend to visit flowers as they encounter them, rather than responding to the reports of a scout bee (as in the case of honeybee colonies). Mason bees and honeybees both die when they sting. Whereas honeybees may sacrifice their individual lives to sting for the defense of the colony, solitary mason bee with no sisters or queen to defend will almost never sting.
Annual Mason Bee Life-cycle
Spring: adult bees emerge from their cocoons, males first, in early spring. The females mate and search for a suitable nesting site where they will lay and provision their eggs.
Summer: the adult bees die by midsummer. The eggs hatch and the larvae develop into pupae and then cocoons. The immature bees are very fragile at this time.
Fall: the bees are fully developed inside their cocoons and may be handled gently. This is a great time to clean and dry the cocoons and nesting cavities (if reusable cavities are used.)
Winter: the bees are dormant inside their cocoons and may be stored in a cold, safe place (e.g. an unheated garage or refrigerator.)
back to home