Buy bees in tubes simulating how these native bees nest in holes nature provides!

Orchard Mason Bee - Osmia lignaria (propinqa)

Our Orchard Mason Bees have been pleasing local customers for many years.  Our commercial accounts have purchased from us season after season and are pleased with the consistent quality of the cocoons.  During seasons when our propagation has exceeded our local accounts, we have sold some tubes nationally and had great reviews.  Our cocoons are waiting inside 12 inch cardboard tubes which are folded in half.  You will receive 25 tubes which will contain a total of 250-300 bees.  

A 6 inch tube is the perfect length for mason bees.  The female bee lays 2-3 female eggs in the back of the tube (each sectioned off with mud) and then 3-4 male eggs in the front of the tube.  The males hatch first and are ready to fertilize the female bees after they hatch.  The females then get about the business of pollinating and laying eggs back in the tube or other home you have nearby.  They then bring nectar to put by their egg so that after the larvae hatch it consumes, grows and then spins a cocoon to wait until their turn for next year's pollinating season!

Buying Mason Bees in tubes makes them extremely easy to use.  Simply put the tubes outside near where you desire pollination or keep them near a window to enjoy watching them work.  We will be selling the cocoons through February or while supplies last.  If you are not ready to use them when you receive the cocoons then simply put them in the refrigerator so they stay asleep.  Our tubes are weighed to ensure we send full, healthy cocoons.  These bees are cultivated in the Willamette Valley of Oregon.  Care sheet included with order. 

Because we are dealing with live creatures; a challenge could arise.  Please contact me if you have any problems as our goal is fruitful pollination and satisfied customers.

Highly Efficient Early Season Pollination

1. Up to 95% pollination efficiency vs 5% for honeybees.

2. Will fly/pollinate at a lower temperature, approximately 55 degrees vs honey bees at approximately 57 degrees.

3. Can fly/pollinate even during cloudy or rainy weather.

4. Commercial orchardists use 1 hive of honeybees (about 40,000 bees) per acre of apples; approximately 500 female Mason bees can do the same work.

5. Emerge from hibernation at the same time as the earliest fruit tree blossoms appear.

General Characteristics

1. Non-aggressive and will not attack.

2. Will not sting unless caught under clothing or squeezed.

3. Will fill existing holes during propagation; will not destroy wood or make new holes.

4. Very easy to care for and sustain; require only a "mud" source, blossoms/nectar, and a suitable hole.

5. A solitary bee; does not require a queen or hive maintenance.

6. Nesting hole will have a series of cocoons separated by thin mud walls, typically 1 cocoon per inch.

7. Males die a few weeks after mating, females die after laying approximately 30-35 eggs.