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"Where you always get what you pay for, and a
little bit more"
 Pollinators For
Sale 
Our best-known Pollinators have been decimated
by an affliction termed "Colony
Collapse Disorder".
GardenGrapevine.com calls it "Insect Alzheimers".
Individual
Honey
Bees leave the Hive and cannot seem to find their way back. They lack
all the abilities which we term, "Instinct". They no longer
forage for nectar, or make wax cells to rear young, or make honey, or
tend the Queen or baby Bees.
We have reason to believe that some other Pollinators are also affected by CCD,
but gentle
Solitary Leaf-Cutter and Mason Bees do not seem to be affected.
Maybe because they have Very limited contact with other Bees.
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This
Solitary Bee arrives at its wooden Tunnel, covered with Pollen
which it
packs near its Eggs to feed Larvae that hatch and become winged
adults.
Honey Bees carry Pollen only on two of their legs.
Solitary Bees are thought to carry up to ten times as much Pollen,
making much more frequent trips to the Blossoms.
This closeup of a split log shows the copious
amount of Pollen collected by the very industrious Solitary Bee prior
to sealing her Eggs in the Cells.
Consider that a
Solitary Bee spends less than 10 seconds at each Blossom, which equates
to 6 Blossoms a minute, or 360 Blossoms an hour, or 3,600 Blossoms in a
10-hour day.
So if you have
10 Tunnels with 10 Cells in each
one, then its not hard to see how those 100 Solitary Bees can Pollinate
360,000 Blossoms a day. In ten days, that's 3,600,000. That's enough
for a backyard Berry Patch, Orchard or Garden.
At Grocery Store prices, it's not difficult for Solitary Bees to
quickly pay for themselves in increased crop production. If you have
adequate Blossoms, but a minimal crop, then these gentle Pollinators
may very well be the answer.
Solitary
Bees do not spend time making wax cells, feeding Larvae, defending the
Hive entrance, tending a Queen, or making Honey. They are focused on
pollination.
There is no work or medication required, as in Honey Bees. But you may
find yourself watching their enjoyable routine. And wonder how a
secluded Larvae develops the essential species-propagating abilities
which Human babies must be taught:
 Eat
the food left by Mother
Chew
their way
out of the Cell
Walk and fly
Forage
for unfamiliar food and liquid
Select
a Home site
Decide when Pollen is Ripe
Collect
Ripe Pollen
Know
where Home is
Bring
Pollen home
Decide
when there is enough Pollen
Back
into the Cell and
Deposit
one
FEMALE Egg
Seal
the Cell
Repeat
the process
Deposit
MALE Eggs last
Chew
pieces from Leaves
Or
find damp Soil
And
roll it into a ball
Find
the way
home with it
Seal
the Tunnel with
Soil or Leaves
Decide
if more
is needed
Get
more if necessary
Find
a new Home
Repeat
the whole process
And wonder what possesses and motivates them;
why don't they just sit on a Leaf and relax by a six-pak of Blossoms ?
Our
Bee-Pak
: Everything you
need - nothing else to buy:
Wooden
Tunnels containing at least 100 Bee Eggs
A
Gift Bee House, with room to raise 50 Bees next year
A
packet of Clay for Mason Bees to build Tunnels
Complete
Instructions
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More
than 100 Solitary Bee Larvae in Tunnels
$38.85 + $4.85 S
& H |
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Comments ?
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