pollinator

Establishing a Successful Bee Garden

The right flowers, fruit, and vegetables in your garden will attract some of your own bees, as well as welcoming bumblebee and solitary bee species.

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Garden Plan for Pollinators

Design choices, plant selections, and maintenance practices can make a huge difference in creating your own healthy ecosystem.

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Can I Make Mason Bee Homes out of Bamboo?

I want to make mason bee homes. I plan to try drilling a wood block, but also try bamboo. Since moisture is an issue with bamboo, has anyone tried drying the bamboo out in a low temp oven? Do they have suggestions about how long and at what temperature to dry the bamboo?

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When Can I Safely Clean Out my Mason Bee Tubes?
July 6, 2020 · · Ask the Expert

In order to care for your mason bees, you need to have some idea when the tubes were filled and capped. If it was in a prior year, the bees inside are most likely dead, so you can discard the tubes and start with a fresh set next year.

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What’s Bothering My Mason Bees?

The parasitic wasp genus Monodontomerus shows up just as the mason bee season is coming to a close. The wasps are very tiny, perhaps fruit fly size, and fly with a nervous, side-to-side pattern that makes them look guilty.

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