Things to Consider
While building a bee nest in itself is relatively simple, ensuring that the bees inhabiting the nest are not subject to specific diseases/infections is not. I hope that when building this nest I can take into consideration these issues and can address them while still staying true to the "Little to no pesticide/fungicide" rule.
Bees that live in tunnel nests (like the mason bee) are prone to a fungal infection called chalkbrood. Chalkbrood spores are spread through the mother bees when collecting pollen. The spores then infect the larva inside of the tunnel, killing them.
Pollen mites are another pest that kills off native bees. They are often spread when a bee is off to forage, or when a bee emerges from its nest. Pollen mites feed on the bee's pollen reserve, eventually starving the bees to death.
I hope to build a few nests and then placing them in a few different areas in Newton, within walking distance from my house.
I will be testing various designs and materials when building these bee nests and will be comparing the amount of bees inhabiting these houses over the course of my 4th term. That is, if the bees actually find my nests habitable.
Bees that live in tunnel nests (like the mason bee) are prone to a fungal infection called chalkbrood. Chalkbrood spores are spread through the mother bees when collecting pollen. The spores then infect the larva inside of the tunnel, killing them.
Pollen mites are another pest that kills off native bees. They are often spread when a bee is off to forage, or when a bee emerges from its nest. Pollen mites feed on the bee's pollen reserve, eventually starving the bees to death.
I hope to build a few nests and then placing them in a few different areas in Newton, within walking distance from my house.
I will be testing various designs and materials when building these bee nests and will be comparing the amount of bees inhabiting these houses over the course of my 4th term. That is, if the bees actually find my nests habitable.
Types of Nests/Houses
Most of the bee nests/houses I have seen are either the wood block or straw variety. Bumblebee nests are the exception as they like to inhabit box nests in the ground. I plan to a couple out of both the wood block and straw kind.
If all else fails...
Because of the opportunity given by Green Decade, my listing for installing bee nests is sent out to over 800 people in Newton. If the worst case scenario happens where I get absolutely no offers, then I would like to do a bee watch over the month of April. This would allow me to evaluate how well Newton provides habitats for pollinators. How would I determine how well Newton does? By the number of different species I find.
Resources Used
http://resonatingbodies.wordpress.com/resources/building-houses-for-native-bees/
http://www.crownbees.com/pollen-mites/
http://www.brandywineconservancy.org/pdfs/nativepollinatorsmid-atlantic.pdf
http://www.crownbees.com/pollen-mites/
http://www.brandywineconservancy.org/pdfs/nativepollinatorsmid-atlantic.pdf