What was buzzy doing today? Let’s see, writing, researching, and….BUILDING! Yes, I am building MANY bee condos. I am making some for the Biosphere 2, some for my house, and some for my good bee friend, goodbear. So yesterday it was:
Go to Home Depot, pick out large 4inx8inx10 ft piece of lumber (untreated). Find nearest person working there and ask them to cut the wood into 10 inch pieces. Tell the cashier what the wood is for. Gave her my card so she could visit the site. And here we are…lot’s of wood that will become native bee condos.
wood for bee condos
Gotta get all the supplies together and get started.
Drill- check
Different sized drill bits- check
Wood block-check
Begin with one size, start drilling. I tried drilling in a line, but obviously you can see, I can’t drill in a straight line. It’s okay though. It just adds character. I used 3 different sized drill bits (1/4″, 3/8″, and 3/16″). For the two largest holes I drilled 6 inches deep, and for the smallest hole I drilled about 4 inches deep. It doesn’t have to be precise. The bees do not have tiny tape measures. This is what it looks like finished.
finished bee condo
And here is Maggie. She is advertising for the bees. “help save the bees with this cool bee condo,” says Maggie. Nothing says “help the bees” like a serious bee condo, next to a serious dog.
Maggie next to the bee condo
I will be putting some up at my place. When I start seeing some bee action I will post an update. And big thanks to those who are trying this out. You will put a smile on my face, and Maggie will be happy her ad is working.
Excellent! You’ve gone and made me feel guilty now! I’ll have to dust off my tools.. and dog..
By: norwegica on April 4, 2009
at 10:31 am
How many are you going to make norwegica? =-)
By: buzzybeegirl on April 4, 2009
at 6:00 pm
Ok. This seems easy enough for even me! I have a drill. Heck, I can even cut the lumber if need be.
Question: how and to what do you mount the bee condos?
By: forkboy on April 5, 2009
at 2:56 am
forkboy, there are 2 ways: 1. drill a hole in the back of the nest and mount it onto a nail or 2. drill a hole across the width, feed bailing wire through it and tie it around the tree. The most important thing is that the block is secure and does not move in the wind. I think I would be sick if my house was rocky =-)
By: buzzybeegirl on April 5, 2009
at 5:06 am
@buzzybeegirl “How many are you going to make norwegica? “.
Probably a couple for the moment. Or possibly something a little larger along these lines: http://www.flickr.com/photos/87532379@N00/2423347448/
By: norwegica on April 5, 2009
at 12:46 pm
after my defense in May, my goal is to build one of these for one of the local small organic farms =-) I think they are so cool.
By: buzzybeegirl on April 5, 2009
at 9:57 pm
Thanks for the solutions buzzybeegirl.
By: forkboy on April 6, 2009
at 12:48 am
1. Maggie looks super-serious.
2. What kind of financing do bees need to buy one of those holes?
3. Are any of the wood pieces co-ops? Do prospective bees have to meet with the board to get approved?
4 Would your real estate venture work in, say, Ohio?
You are quite the homebuilder! Bravo!
By: Checkers on April 6, 2009
at 6:47 pm
Checkers!! It’s great to see you back.
1. Maggie is serious because she is VERY serious about her mortgage rates for the bee condos…0%
2. Financing is in the form of pollination services. No lazy bees allowed!
3. Checkers…I am the board!
4. Ohio is a great place for bees. You can also choose your own rates & financing
By: buzzybeegirl on April 7, 2009
at 1:12 am
Can you use scrap 2×4 pieces? I have a bunch of 10-12″ pieces laying around, but the holes can only be, well, slightly less than 4″ deep.
regards–ted
By: Ted C. MacRae on April 10, 2009
at 3:36 am
Hi Ted. You can use the 2×4 scrap pieces. if you use small drill bits they only have to be drilled in about 3.5-4 inches. But, if you want some of the medium sized leaf cutters you need to drill the holes about 6 inches in, so you can drill the holes through the longest axis. That is how I made my trap-nests for my project.
By: buzzybeegirl on April 10, 2009
at 6:18 am
WOW! A return to junior high and wood shop. I didn’t do well in wood shop like other kids.
But I’m pretty sure I can ace this project. I even have access to a table saw, drill bits, and even a trusty dog….not sure how he’ll be at advertising for bees, though: I may have to do that. In fact, I’ll spread the word around DBG (local Bot Garden) and get your name in lights! (Well, maybe not in lights…but you get my meaning.)
Thanks!
PS> Thanks for the suggestions on mortgage rates, Maggie!
By: sambissell on April 13, 2009
at 11:29 pm
Thanks Sam =-) That would be great…even if there are no lights
By: buzzybeegirl on April 14, 2009
at 4:40 am
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