Thanks to all who visited my table at the six seedy Saturdays which I attended this spring. I was pleased to see a great level of interest from many people who are enthusiastic about adding to the populations of these efficient pollinators and the control of mason bee predators. It was also good to see that many people appreciated the effectiveness of the phragmites reed grass tubes and returned to invest in more reeds.
METCHOSIN MASON BEES
MY TABLE
Sooke Seedy Saturday
Sooke Seedy Saturday
Thanks to those who put their name on the mailing list, and now I will be reminding them throughout the year about the steps they need to take at different times of the year to best care for their bees. A big thanks also to the many volunteers in the communities who work so hard to make these popular meets so successful.
I sold Mason bee cocoons and Phragmites reed grass tubes of all sizes at the following Seedy Saturdays /Sundays in February/March 2024.
Come with your questions and your kids..(We will hatch some cocoons for them.)
Mason Bee Cocoons are sold out for this season
and I will again be able to supply Phragmites Native Reed Grass Tubes after May 14. ================================= Pre-ordering cocoons by Paypal is possible: 30 Mason Bee Cocoons for $25.00.for pick up at my farm in Metchosin. NOTE: I DO NOT SEND COCOONS BY MAIL. you can pick them up at the farm
I also have Phragmites reed grass tubes for culturing mason bees for sale. I can ship the tubes through the mail.–For customers who are not local, I package these tubes in lots of 33 for $15.00 plus shipping costs. Included are a variety of lengths and diameters. A few smaller diameters attract other mason bee species and leafcutter bees. Indicate the maximum tube length you prefer when ordering.
Also by putting out the tubes alone without releasing bees, you can in some areas attract the native pollinators to build their nests in the empty tubes anyway. That’s the way I first obtained mason bee cocoons.
See below for details on ordering if you cannot pick them up at the farm. I can have these available at any time of year, and it is best to get them set out by March.
For shipping in Canada, the price for 33 tubes=$20.00 Canadian
For shipping in Canada, the price for 66 tubes=$40.00 Canadian
For shipping in Canada, the price for 100 tubes=$60.00 Canadian
For shipping in Canada, the price for 130 tubes=$80.00 Canadian
In a separate email with your address, state your size preference as sizes 4″ (10cm) to 7 “(18 cm) or mixed are available. This will depend on the depth of the box you have in which to put them.–
QR CODE for PayPal
Scan this QR code to download and checkout with Paypal.
use garryf followed by the@ sign then gmail.com for my Paypal address
I can also accept e-transfers to this email address
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Scroll down through other posts to see my suggestions for building inexpensive Mason bee homes out of recycled and re-purposed material
I have had a hunch lately that the cost of mason bee cocoons has followed the pattern we see in the rest of the industries and has risen considerably so I have done some comparisons with my prices with an American and Canadian companies.
I also saw Brian Guzda at Duncan Seedy Saturday and he has also done some investigating and found the following :
He said “I checked mason bee cocoon prices from 12 different sources mostly on the island and a few from the lower mainland with :
The average price per cocoon working out to $1.68 each.
The high was 2.25. per cocoon. Definitely over priced.”
Buckerfields 10 cocoons– regular $15.99. that’s $1.60 per cocoon !
================================================== BC Bee, Beekeeping Supply: (Canadian) Mason bee cocoons $22.50 per 10 cocoons = $2.25 per cocoon
Cardboard tubes: $14.00 for 20 = $0.70 per tube
(unknown if there are shipping costs)
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Crown bees in the US:
Mason Bee Cocoons: 20 for $29.95 US = $40.28 (Can)= $2.01 (Can) per cocoon
Phragmites tubes: 50 = 16.95 US , or $22.79 (Canadian)= $0.4558 per tube (Can)
(unknown if there are shipping costs)
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Metchosin Mason Bees:(in $ Canadian)
Mason bee Cocoons : 30 for 25 cocoons = $0.83 per cocoon
Phragmites native reed grass tubes 33 for $15.00 = $0.4545 per tube
and if they have to be mailed 33 for $20.00 = $0.60 per tube
Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, is one of the most commonly used herbicides in the world by commercial gardeners. However, many pesticides – including insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides – harm pollinators and other beneficial insects.
To help educate those in the farming and gardening industries about this toxic chemical, drugwatch.com has created a comprehensive guide with organic, and homemade; and a second guide with agricultural alternatives. please take a look:
drugwatch.com/roundup/glyphosate/ Glyphosate
Glyphosate is an herbicide used to kill weeds. It’s the active ingredient in Roundup and other weed killers, and can cause a variety of side effects. Recent lawsuits have claimed exposure to glyphosate in Roundup has led to certain cancers, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma.Alternatives to Roundup
Roundup products contain glyphosate, a chemical linked to cancer and other illnesses. Chemical alternatives to Roundup can also contain toxic ingredients, but safe alternatives to Roundup include soap, vinegar, salt or iron-based sprays, mulching and integrated weed management.
ARCHIVAL: This post has been re-dated from 2015 in order to position it closer in the blog to Mason Bee Information
RESERVE YOUR MASON BEES NOW
Now sold out for the 2016 season- there’s always next year!
Mason Bee
Many garden and on-line supply outlets sell cocoons of the most efficient pollinator, the mason bee, for a much higher price. I can provide them now locally until the end of March (2016 )for $6.00 per dozen as supplies last.
Blue orchard (mason) bee just emerged from a cocoon
Mason Bees (also known as blue orchard bees) can be picked up at our farm if only a few dozen are needed or for significantly large orders we may be able to arrange for refrigerated delivery within the BC lower mainland/Vancouver Island area any time this spring. They can either be released in late February or March for early flowering peaches etc. or they can be held refrigerated until as late as June for release coinciding with the blooming times of other plants: blueberries, strawberries, apples, pears, cherries etc.
The local reed grass, Phragmites tubes for mason bee culture.
I will also be selling a limited number of packets of the local Phragmitesreed tubes for $10.00 for two dozenthis year. They can be inserted in a simply made house –- see other posts on this website for suggestions.
You can place orders now and arrange for pickup now or later by e-mailing.
NOTE OF CONCERN: As a former Biology teacher, I am concerned that websites advertising mason bees to send anywhere on the continent are making a big mistake in promoting population genetic contamination. As well as competing with local strains, introduced genetic lines could easily turn out to promote problems such as new parasite introduction and elimination of naturally evolved species . So be sure to ask your supplier where they have originated, in order to be sure you are getting bees have been cultured from natural varieties from your own area. That’s why I would sell only to Vancouver Island or the lower mainland of British Columbia. I have never bought mason bees. Fortunately I live in an agricultural are which avoids the use of pesticides, so native bees still thrive. My native mason bees from our farm found the first nest boxes I put up on their own, and it is from them that I continue to produce new cocoons each year.
Garry Fletcher: email to garryf use the at sign gmail.com (Jan. 2016)
ARCHIVAL: This post has been re-dated from 2015 in order to position it closer in the blog to Mason Bee Information Last year with the long warm season, our mason bees on the farm were successful in filling a large number of reed tubes with cocoons. Now I am removing them from the tubes, cleaning them and storing in the refrigerator until release time from the end of February until the end of June. I will be selling them locally again for a price much below that of commercial outlets and they are available immediately at the price of $6.00 per dozen cocoons.
Also, one of my last year’s clients showed me the mason bee house he had made with cutting channels in wood. He also included a section with reed grass tubes which I had given to him to try out. The comparison was quite astounding, as can be seen in this photograph with a definite preference for the Phragmites reed grass tubes being demonstrated.
I will be selling a limited number of these reed tubes for $5.00 a dozen this year.
Contact me at this e-mail: garryf (use the @sign) then add gmail dot com.
ARCHIVAL: This post has been re-dated from 2016 in order to position it closer in the blog to Mason Bee Information
The mason bees have almost stopped their work of pollination by now. However several bumblebee species and honey bees were very active around certain plants in the yard this week.
Honey Bee Apis melliferaon Deutchia
Bombus calignosus??Bee on Deutzia gracilis
Bombus sp.
Today the bees preferred the shrub Deutzia gracilis
Two different bee species
Note differing location of colour bands on these bumblebees.
An unidentified bee on Deutzia
A hover fly on Escallonia possibly Lapposyrphus lapponicus
It has been so cool in the last month here in Metchosin that my mason bees have almost missed the peach and nectarine blooming time.
The nectarines bloom a few days after the peaches, but they were out by April 7
The native flowering currants were even a month late this year.
A peach tree on the left with blossoms deteriorating, and a nectarine on the right at the south side of my barn. Three Mason bee houses are in the centre.
Update–April 15: Today they were the most active i have seen them . I started putting a few cocoons out a week ago, and have warmed up some indoors by just removing their containers from the fridge and then setting the jar out in the daytime when the sun is on them. Anyway a very unusual cold start for the spring.
Note the open jar top right I put out for release of bees when the sun is out
The small compartments also hold a supply of cocoons which will hatch naturally when the temperature warms up. 13-14 degree C is necessary.
I have several kinds of houses placed on the southeast corner of our house.
Note, I have re-dated this 2017 post to make it appear with the other mason bee posts.
I sold Mason bee cocoons and Phragmites reed grass tubes of all sizes at the following Seedy Saturdays /Sundays in February/March 2024. 
Westshore Seedy Saturday ..their inaugural year!
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