The message t
from "Mary Fisher" contains these words:
"Beryl Harwood" wrote in message
...


I don't know what you mean by a 'bee tube,' a collection of tubes will
provide nesting facilities for some kind of bees but not honey bees and
not
bumble bees.

This is a tube [like a drain pipe but this is tan in colour and special
consstruction I think] with several different size smaller tubes inside
a bit like bamboo sizes.

Ah - so it Is a collection of tubes. Good. They'll probably be used by
solitary bees such as leaf cutters or even mason bees. Their life cycle is
fascinating.

They are not aimed at the honey or bumbles but
some of the others that escapes me right now. I want to say monarch,
but that is a butterfly so it can't be, also a 'leaf cutter' bee?

Yes.

Ahh, It was the mason bee I forgot.

Anyway I thought that to try and save any would be better than nothing.
I am not sure if there is any other kind of refuge I could provide.
There was never another visit to that old bird nesting pocket and it has
rotted away now.

The tubes aren't a refuge, they'e to provide places for the bees to lay
eggs. Whatever you do don't discard them or 'clean them out' through the
winter, that's the time when the brood is growing. The occupied tubes will
have a tiny bundle of dried leaves or mud at the open end to seal them. It
can look untidy if you've worried about such things :-) New adults will
emerge in the spring. This year's adults will have died but the tubes will
probably be used again.

Thank you for that extra information. No, I owuld not have discarded
the tubes or cleaned them out. The leaflet that came with the tube
informed me about the leaf or mud 'plugs' and said to move it to
somewhere to protect it from frost, but not warm, for the winter and put
it out again in April time. It has to have some occupants first though
as it has only been out for a short time, since when there have been
only very rare sitings of bees of any kind. I hope it does get used
though I suspect it may be too late for this year.

Beryl