Bee bath and beyond

Since bee sizes and habits vary, they need different kinds of housing. Here are easy, step-by-step instructions for three bee dwellings and a bath:

Mini bee highrise

This will provide shelter for a variety of smaller bee species.

Cut a 3- to 5-inch (7- to 13- cm) block from a 2X4 or other scrap lumber (not cedar).
Drill holes of various widths (1mm to 5mm) in the edges of the block, to the depth of the drill bit (don’t go all the way through).
Nail the block to a one-foot (30-cm) garden stake. (Be sure not to nail through a bee tunnel!)
Put the stake in your garden anywhere there are flowers.
Adjacent to the new bee home, dig down into your garden soil until you reach clay, or keep a bowl of moist clay for them to use as construction material.

Over summer, you’ll notice the holes in the block will fill up. What’s going on? A bee has put a bit of pollen and nectar in the hole, laid an egg on top, and then sealed it up with clay. When the egg hatches, fit will feed on the goodies left behind and make its way out into the world the following year.

Bumblebee nest

Bumblebees are one of Canada’s “keystone species” – over 250 insect species depend on them. These species in turn support thousands of other plants, animals and insects. Making a welcoming spot for bumblebees is one of the most important things you can do to protect nature.

Find a one-gallon plastic plant pot with drainage holes in the side (not the bottom).
Fill the pot about 1/3 full with nesting material – dry grass or moss, wood shavings, even dryer lint!
Flip the pot over and make sure it’s in contact with the soil, so the holes are facing south or east.
Put a plate over the house to provide shade (notice that the holes are still accessible).
Top with a rock (or even your bee bath!) to weight the plate down.

Don’t despair if bumblebees don’t show up this season. Try again next year – you’ll eventually succeed.

Mason bee house

About the size of houseflies, Blue Orchard bees (Osmia lignaria aka “mason bees”) are so named because they create rows of cells in their nests divided with walls of clay. A single female will visit as many as 17 flowers per minute!

Reuse an empty milk carton (waterproof!) with the spout cut off – leave the bottom intact – or a box about that size made of wood scraps (not cedar).
Paint a wooden house a bright colour with exterior zero- or low-VOC (volatile organic compounds) paint. These emit fewer toxins than other conventional paints. At first, the bees will fly around taking mental ‘snapshots’ of their potential new home, but they’ll soon learn to make a bee-line (!) to their new abode. If you plan to make more than one bee house, or your neighbour has one, be sure they’re different colours!
Fill the box with layered stacks of brown paper nest tubes, which you can buy at a garden store. Cut the tubes to six inches (15.75 cm) long, closing the end with tape or a staple, or fold them in half. Commercial nest tubes are 5/16 of an inch (.79 cm) in diameter, the exact size of an HB pencil. Make your own by rolling a piece of brown paper (use a recycled grocery bag!) around a pencil, then pinch off the end and seal it with tape.
Hang the house somewhere out of the rain, facing south or east, at eye level, once the temperature outside has warmed to 12-14º C (54-57º F).
Dig down below your garden soil adjacent to your bee house until you expose the clay layer, or keep a bowl of moist clay near your bee house for the masons to use as construction material.
It may take a full season for the bees to find your house. If you don’t have any luck attracting locals, you can also purchase mason bees from a garden store or local bee keeper.

Bee bath

Bees and other beneficial insects – ladybugs, butterflies, and predatory wasps – all need fresh water to drink but most can’t land in a conventional bird bath without crashing. “They’re like tanks with wings,” says bee master Brian Campbell. “They need islands in the water to touch down on.”

Line a shallow bowl or plate with rocks.
Add water, but leave the rocks as dry islands to serve as landing pads.
Place the bath at the ground level in your garden. (Put it near “problem plants” – those that get aphids, for example – and the beneficial insects that come to drink will look after them.)
Refresh the water daily, adding just enough to evaporate by day’s end.