[ACBEES]

The following excerpt is from the new Miller Nursery catalog, page 67......

Mason Bee Nest Kits

"Attract these friendly Native American Mason Bees. They'll increase your fruit set, now that honeybees are becoming scarce. Super pollinators for fruit trees, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and other spring flowering fruits and ornamentals. USDA research has found Mason Bees present throughout the USA and Canada and that each hairy bodied Mason can do the pollinating job of close to 100 honeybees....yet won't sting or chase unless aggressively provoked"

Talk about a misrepresentation of honey bees. If you are as insensed as I am, let Miller now about it. Phone:1-800-836-9630, fax:1-585-396-2154, web:www.millernurseries.com

 

[beemandan]

You're incensed because they said that honey bees are becoming scarce?

 

[dabb]

yet won't sting or chase unless aggressively provoked"

I think he meant this part

 

[beemandan]

dabb, mason bees don't sting or chase unless aggressively provoked. What the heck does that have to do with honey bees?

 

[CentralPAguy]

Beemandan,

You are right when you read it the second time. The first time I read it, my initial impression was that Masonbees unlike the Honeybees won't sting unless provoked.

 

[Omie]

Not everyone can logistically keep honeybees in their yards or gardens. Anyone can put up mason bee houses, and mason bees are beneficial bees for the environment and the garden too.

 

[ACBEES]

I guess others aren't taking exception to following characterizations:

"Now that honey bees are becoming scarce"....since when?

"one Mason bee can do the work of nearly 100 honey bees"....news to me!

"won't sting or chase you unless aggressively provoked".....implying a foraging honey bee will......not that I've ever seen or experienced!

oh well, maybe it's just me...

 

[Skinner Apiaries]

ACBEES, you have too much freetime. Couldn't you be making money with all that extra time?

 

[beemandan]

"Now that honey bees are becoming scarce"....since when?

When I sell honey at a local farmers’ market, many of the old farmers will tell me they no longer see any honey bees pollinating their plants. They used to see loads of ferals but now see mostly native bees. I reckon it depends on your definition of scarce.

"one Mason bee can do the work of nearly 100 honey bees"....news to me!

Mason bees are pretty stinkin’ good pollinators. Honey bees aren’t so good. What honey bees lack in individual skill, they make up for in sheer volume. Much depends on the bloom. I didn’t take this as a slam on honey bees….more of a cheer for masons.

"won't sting or chase you unless aggressively provoked".....implying a foraging honey bee will......not that I've ever seen or experienced!

I didn’t take it that way. More just a statement of fact. Mason bees aren’t aggressive. Before many homeowners will consider putting up a nesting box, their first question is ‘will they sting’.

oh well, maybe it's just me...

I understand how one might interpret these things differently….but incensed seemed a bit strong to me.
Best to ya.

 

[Blackwater Bee]

I looked into Mason Bees last summer out of curiosity, they are beneficial for crop pollination, but that is it. The one thing that did irk me was that most suppliers for Mason Bee pollinator equipment and hardware were quite biased towards the Honey Bee, calling them lousy pollinators, the fact that they sting and that there were no Queens to deal with. Both bees have their place in our environment, but to crap on one or the other for monetary gain ( sale of equipment ) is just ludicrous. If Honey Bees were such " lousy Pollinators ", then it would not be a billion dollar industry. Honey Bees bring us much more than Pollination ( Wax, Honey, Pollen, Propolis ) and fly on average 2 miles to gather resources, Mason Bees bring us ONLY the benefits of pollination, which they do well, but only on average to 100 yards of their home.

Honey Bees

Mason Bees