[{"id":243162874049,"handle":"solitary-bees","updated_at":"2025-04-16T13:06:07+01:00","published_at":"2021-01-28T09:55:00+00:00","sort_order":"manual","template_suffix":"","published_scope":"web","title":"Solitary Bees","body_html":"\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eAlthough not as familiar as honey bees or bumblebees, solitary bees are gentle bees that are amazingly effective pollinator. In the U.K just under 250 of the 270 species of bee are solitary bees. As the name suggests, they tend not to live in colonies. Instead, they lay their larvae in tubes, tunnels or nesting chambers. Sealing them in with enough food to last until they are ready to emerge through the seal of mud and chewed leaves as adult pollinators.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eNatural habitats, for solitary bees to build nests, become harder to find in modern gardens. The addition of a solitary bee house or hotel can attract bees to your garden to nest and return year after year. The ideal site to place your solitary bee house is well above the ground in a warm, south-facing position, ideally, near plenty of nectar-rich flowers, plants and tree. To attract solitary bees into your garden, you should include flowering plants to provide nectar and pollen. Our selected range of native wildflower species is ideal for pollinating bees in our Plants for Wildlife category.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eWildlife World has been studying the solitary bee for 15 years. As a result, we have many tried and tested solitary bee habitats for you to choose from. As well as the essentials to enable you to build your bee hotels.\u003c\/p\u003e","image":{"created_at":"2021-02-15T12:00:36+00:00","alt":null,"width":900,"height":934,"src":"\/\/wildlifeworldtrade.co.uk\/cdn\/shop\/collections\/solitary_bees_900x_2727bfad-3ca6-41a5-bb08-89947459072f.jpg?v=1613390436"}}]
Experience the fascinating world of bees with these cardboard solitary bee nesting tubes. Solitary bees are a delight to watch going about their vital work of pollinating in your garden. They are non-aggressive to people and pets. It is their lifestyle that makes them so gentle. They do not live in a colony and do not have any honey to defend.
From March to August, the female bees will lay eggs in the tubes. Then create a series of cells separated by mud or leaf walls. However, this depends on species. The larvae will develop over the winter period in the tubes. Then emerge as adult bees the following spring. The males and females then mate, and the females' whole cycle laying the larvae in the tubes begins over again.
Our tubes are ideal for mason/orchard bees. Used to easily fill existing bee boxes or to make your own simple bee nester. By using fresh cardboard tubes every season, excellent bee health may be maintained. For professional management of solitary bees in horticultural and orchard environments, you may wish to use these tubes in conjunction with paper tube liners to examine the bee cells and parasite control.
To help the conservation of these species, please support the International Bee Research Association – IBRA WEBSITE.
