# mason bee help



## AndrewD12 (Feb 3, 2021)

I recently joined and posted on the welcome tab but I decided not to clog it up and just post it on here. I had great people answer my questions on that thread and have read other threads about mason bees on here. I was wondering about mason bees and whether or not to buy the cocoons or not and ill probably debate about it for a while but if you have any tips id enjoy reading them thank you.


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## William Bagwell (Sep 4, 2019)

Couple of thoughts. Likely seasonal so you may only have weeks or a month to order mason bees for this year.

Not sure if mason bees are guilty, but some 'mud daubing' bee or wasp species will fill every possible hole they can with mud which then dries. Not cool if it is the over pressure vent for your water heater! Or more recently the tip end of my propane torch. Could not clean it well enough and had to buy a new one... Nice having a push button start, but was not planing on buying a new one. Most of it was over 40 years old and had been my dads

More amusing was a hose repair coupling. Daughter needed one and it took me several minutes to get it off the nail it was hanging on. Yup, packed with dried mud.


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## AndrewD12 (Feb 3, 2021)

our blooms start appearing in march and its coming up quicker than I thought ill have to search places that sell mason bees or find a source somewhere. I like starting small and watch something grow over the years. we've had mud dauber wasps here and their nests form all over the porch. thankfully I put this on a empty wall above my garden and nothing else. sounds like they could be after you lol.hopefully if they do show up they stay to the house I build and nowhere else around the outside of the house.


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## Kuro (Jun 18, 2015)

Find your local vender. Large nursery stores often carry them. They will tell you what to do when. 

I live in Washington state (Seattle area, Zone 8) and bought ~20 cocoons at a local nursery store ($20), in late March 2017. Very good hatching rate and I never had to buy them again. My garden only seems to support <10 female bees, and I harvested 25 - 80 cocoons at the end of each season (it is not necessary to 'harvest' cocoons from nesting tubes, but I do that in winter and store washed cocoons in fridge until apple flowers begin to bloom).

I really like their metallic-blue color.


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

Crown bees is a reliable supplier, and has been in the business for decades.
They are not cheap, but you get what you pay for - disease-free cocoons.
You can pick your delivery date now for anything from 2/15/21 onward.


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