- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Published on: July 26, 2011
Ten tenants.
That's how many tenants are occupying our wooden bee block, aka "bee condo."
It's "home, sweet home" for leafcutting bees (Megachile spp.).
Daily we see these native bees tear holes in leaves (red bud, rose, catmint, gold coin, rock purslane and nectarine) and gather the fragments to line their nests.
Folks who grow prize-winning roses--the kind that win blue ribbons at county fairs and rose shows--aren't fond of these little critters, but we are.
Especially when we see two leafcutters at the bee condo at the same time...
Comments:
by Albert F Stevenson
on August 3, 2011 at 4:52 PM
thanh you again. i have a mason bee box that is filled with leaf cutters. thanks for the pictures!
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