March 6, 2020 The world wide celebration of Pi day approaches

3.14 is a milestone day for mason bees.  They all know about it.

March 6 is the count down to 8  for March 14

Mason bees may be small but they are powerful pollinators.

I don't expect any bees until 3.14 but I will keep a look out.

There were a grand sum total of zero today.

I use a chromebook to update this blog. I also use my smart phone for most photos.
I will be sure to take a photo of a corona virus if I see one. Of course, I will only take
a picture of a corona virus if I can recognize it.  Maybe I ought to be realistic?
People remark that mason bees do not sting.From my observations the mason bee
does not need to sting. The fly very fast. They dont stay long in one spot

Has anyone every heard of Alexander Ulrice? He would have been born between 1841 to 1861. He would have lived in Mecosta, Michigan between 1881-1882.

I plant lots of flowers which are scheduled for early spring.

May 5, 2020

The air temperature on Monday-Tues and Wednesday are supposed to be all highs over
50(F).  Three days in a row seems to signal the little rascals to get busy.
We will see.

winter daphne flowers, extremely fragrant

both condos ready for new tenants

white plastic mesh containing pupae  protected by 1/4 inch mesh hardware cloth

On 3.14 I may drink canada dry.

May 4 2020

shaaaarooooooom

No bees today

Palm in Austin Texas, big flower coming out

Coyote in the park.

here are a few fun photos
We put a few plastic coyotes in the park to scare off the Canadian geese.
It is not totally effective, but the geese tend to avoid our park as a result

Some people call these shrooms.  The are not really safe to eat. 

I raised some of my yuccas from seed. But this one(above) I cheated and purchased it from a local nursery.

march 3rd, 2020

Full view of the first condo installed.
The plastic keeps the condo dry in the
worst rain storm,

No bees today, it was way too cold.
The first day where no frost is guaranteed in April 3.
That may be true, but I think Pi day will be pretty good.
I see a few common flies but, so far, I only saw two mason
bees on March 1.
This year I have a mix of parchment paper tubes and fresh black bamboo
tubes.  I cut the bamboo from my garden. I only get about 20 new shoots
per year, so next spring I will have a problem. I estimate I need twice that
many for my two mason-bee-condos.   Maybe I will need to rely on
more parchment paper.

This year none of  mason bees are in tubes. In October 2019 I
took all the bamboo tubes and split them open.  I carefully
put the cocoons in a basket and then washed them with a very
dilute solution of bleach and water.  Then I stored them in a shaded
area on the wall of my shed.  I kept them  the white plastic cloth
which allows plenty of ventilation.

Just waiting for the emergence now.

I don't expect much until Albert Einstein's birthday (March 14 aka pi day).

Only 11 days now.

The Corona virus is the talk of the town. Stores which sell household supplies
are busy.  The biggest think seems to be toilet paper.   There is a crazy rumor
that supplies will be unavailable. I don't understand why but the hoarders are cleaning
up all packages as soon as the stores put them out. 

The problem with the corona virus for people over 70 seems to be it can be fatal.
We will see. So far about 6 people have died in Washington, all over 70.

I have been trying to get my radio shack setup.

I am sure there are already enough flowers to support the first mason bees.
Photos show  yellow and white daffodils, winter daphne and some crocus.

daffodils

winter daphne shrub, flowers are extremely fragrant

White daffodils with yellow centers
The mason bees should be able to find plenty of nectar and pollen.

March 2nd, 2020

It is rather cold today.  So no mason bee activity.

The condos are complete and the bees have been released.

I will just keep an eye on the situation.

The temperature has to get to 50 degrees F .

Only 48 degrees today.  Got to be at least 50 F

In two weeks  we will probably get there.

March - 1st - condo-installed today

Today I installed the second condo today.
Only 13 days to Pi day.  Bees love March 14.
They like the fact their emergence is celebrated.
The bee pupas are set out near the condos.  Distance is about
five feet,.

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mud for the bees. This is made out of cat litter,

white mesh sack. it is open to let the mason bees out. the 1/4 inch screen protects the bees from birds

bag of pupae, one already emerged. Will keep an eye on this every dau

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When I opened the bee sack, I saw one bee already emerged.
As a result, I just set the bag out and opened. I covered the open bag
with 1/4 inch hardware cloth.

I will be watching closely over the next few days.

I have noticed 2 bees buzzing the condos.  Probably both males because
they are small and it is quite early. (Males emerge first.)

Below are photos taken today