Here are the highlights -
- Native pollinators since before Columbus
- No queen bee
- Very little sting and only when provoked
- More effective pollinator then the honey bee
- Female can lay 34 eggs in a lifetime, about 1-2 per day
- Larva eat for about a month before spinning a cocoon
- September/October the adult bee will hibernate till spring
- Bees should be kept in a dry 35-45 degree during winter
- Should not stay outside unless protected from marauding woodpecker and driller wasps
Information from The Orchard Mason Bee by Brian Griffin and All About The Mason Bees by Wild Birds Unlimited
