Bee change – invite native bees into your garden

In the Sydney region there are 200 native bee species. Most are tiny, smaller than the common European honeybee, so you might not have noticed them.

While some, like the well-known Sugarbag stingless bees (Tetragonula carbonaria) nest in hives most native bees are solitary, nesting in shallow ground tunnels or stems of dead plants. For example:

Teddy bear (Amegilla bombiformis) and blue-banded bees (Amegilla cingulata), nest in shallow burrows in the ground, soft sandstone or in soft mortar between bricks. The leaf cutter bee (Megachile sp.), which cut neat circles out of leaves to take back to their nests, which are in a ground burrow or crevice. The resin bee (also Megachile genus) that nests in narrow holes in timber or crevices in other materials, use resin to seal the entrance to the nest.

A: Teddy bear bee, credit: Muchos Insectos - Flickr; B: Blue banded bee; C: Leaf cutter bee, credit: Jean & Fred Hort - Flickr; D: Reed bee, credit: Jean & Fred Hort - Flickr.

Bee populations around the world, including our local native bees are in decline due to pesticide use and loss of habitat. But you can support and protect these fascinating and important pollinators.

• Grow flowering native plants (bees favour blue and yellow but will seek out any flower)
• Avoid pesticides and other poisons – this will also benefit lizards and birds who eat insects
• Let some of your herbs go to flower
• Leave some dead stems and wood on your plants to provide natural nesting sites
• Add some stones or rocks to your bird bath so bees can easily access the water
• Keep a stingless beehive in your garden
• Look closely at the insects on your flowers and check iNaturalist to log sightings and ID native bees
• Build a bee hotel – ensure it is suitable by following the instructions below, many of the shop bought ones don’t take bee ecology into account.

Below, a female bee is sealing up the entrance to a tube after laying her larvae inside.  Bees use mud, resin, leaves and a pollen mixture to seal the entrances.   The second photo show a new bee emerging after tunneling their way through the seal.

Photo credit:  Bee sealing tube Picture Esk - Flickr; Bee emerging Colin Durfee - Flickr

Build your own bee hotel

A hotel is suitable for bees who like to burrow in tubes, including Resin, Leaf cutter, Reed and Masked Bees.

📝 What You’ll Need

• Waterproof frame (hardwood or a recycled plastic bottle)
• Bamboo canes (3–10 mm in diameter, 15- 20 cm long with no blockages inside but sealed at one end)
• Lantana stems or similar soft-centred branches
• String or wire
• Pruning clippers and/or a saw
• Sandpaper
• Weatherproof, non-toxic paint (optional for decoration)

🛠️ Construct your hotel

Step 1: Build a frame

If you are handy, build a timber frame with untreated hardwood 15-20cm deep, with a slight overhang of the roof to protect from the weather. Make sure it has a back too. You can also use a plastic bottle frame.

Step 2: Cut stems to size

Cut bamboo and lantana stems to 15–20 cm. Smooth rough edges with sandpaper.  Place the stems inside the hotel frame, you can tie together with string (no glue!) to keep them securely in place (optional).

Step3: Decorate your hotel

If you fancy brightening the hotel up use weatherproof, non-toxic paint. Optional.

Step 3: Install the Hotel

Mount or hang your hotel it 1–2 meters off the ground in a partially sunny, sheltered area. Morning sun is great, so the bees wake up early and get to the flowers first but try to find a place that protects the hotel from harsh, afternoon sun.

Step 4: Bee Patient!

It may take time for bees to find your hotel. You may need to wait until spring and summer, when bees are most active.

Caring for your bee hotel

Some bee larvae will emerge during summer in the same year the egg was laid, whilst some will remain in the tube until the following spring / summer. It’s important to take steps not to throw out tubes that still have bees in!

You will need to clean your bee hotel every 2 years or when all the tubes have been used or are deteriorating.

1. Wait until late winter when most bees should have hatched and left

2. Remove the stems carefully and place in a dry outdoor area. Place a box or bucket, with a small hole to let in the light, upside down over the tubes. When the remaining bees emerge, they will fly towards the light.

3. Refill the hotel with fresh, stems and bamboo.

Creating a hotel for blue banded bees

Blue banded bees nest in soft sandstone and old mortar. You can replicate their nesting environment by building a mud brick house. Check this great instructional video from the folks at Planting Seeds.