Share

cover art for 49: All about Mason Bees

The Green Meridian Podcast - A Landscape Design/Build Toolkit

49: All about Mason Bees

Season 2, Ep. 49

On this episode of the Green Meridian podcast, we learn about the busy Mason bee and how these beneficial insects can transform the vibrancy and health in your gardens and landscapes. We discuss how to introduce mason bees to your outdoor area - and how you can purchase, manage and nurture bee populations at your home or landscape project site.


We talk here with Dave Hunter, the founder of Crown Bees. You can learn more at Dave's website: https://crownbees.com/. Mason bees are solitary bees that are native to North America. They are excellent pollinators, and they are very easy to attract to your garden. Mason bees are very different from honey bees. Honey bees are social bees that live in colonies, while mason bees are solitary bees that live on their own. Mason bees are also much smaller than honey bees. They are about the size of a housefly, and they have black bodies with a blue or green sheen. Mason bees are important pollinators. They pollinate a wide variety of plants, including fruits, vegetables, and flowers. Mason bees are also very efficient pollinators. They can pollinate a plant in just a few seconds.


If you are interested in attracting mason bees to your garden, there are a few things you can do. 

  • First, you need to provide them with a place to nest. You can do this by building a mason bee house. Mason bee houses are very simple to build, and there are many plans available online.
  • Second, you need to provide mason bees with food. Mason bees eat pollen and nectar. You can provide them with food by planting a variety of flowers in your garden. Mason bees are especially attracted to blue and purple flowers.
  • Finally, you need to provide mason bees with water. You can do this by placing a shallow dish of water in your garden. The dish should be filled with pebbles or marbles so that the bees can land on them.


Mason bees are one of our most important beneficial insects. Excellent pollinators, they are very easy to attract to your garden. 

If you are interested in learning more about mason bees, have a listen!.


Also check out these busy bee resources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mason_bee

https://crownbees.com/pages/mason-bee-characteristics-and-identification

https://thebeeconservancy.org/

More episodes

View all episodes

  • 58. 58: The ins & outs of insurance for Green Industry Professionals

    57:45||Season 2, Ep. 58
    For this episode, we speak with Ryland Longoni of Federated Insurance (rjlongoni@fedins.com), a specialist insuring landscape designers, landscape architects, general contractors and other green industry professionals. Ryland answers key questions, such as "How much insurance do I need?", "How much liability insurance is enough?" - and covers the ins and outs of Errors & Omissions insurance, talks about importance of appropriate text in your contracts and discusses a few key questions that green industry folks should be asking their insurance agents.
  • 57. 57: The Human Habitat

    22:35||Season 2, Ep. 57
    What if there was almost universal agreement on what constitutes good landscape design? What if we could break a "hidden code" that unlocks the secret to any successful landscape layout? It's fascinating to consider that human beings have a largely consistent sense of what constitutes beauty in art - most of us stand in awe of Michelangelo's talent and line up for hours to see the works in the Louvre or The Metropolitan Museum of Art. It's safe to say that folks generally agree about traditional artistic beauty. (Sure there are dissenters and outliers, but let's ignore those folks for a moment). My point is to ask if there might be a "code", or a formula, that could define a sensibility of comfort and calm - beauty really - in a landscape? The studies I found can lead us to a fairly amazing understanding of how humans view our outdoor environments. This kind of knowledge might inform and underpin how we approach landscape design - and set the groundwork for some reliable rules that help us create beautifully functional outdoor spaces. Have you ever looked closely and been struck by the beauty in a carefully hand fitted stone wall? Do you find certain kinds of garden layouts more appealing than others? Of course you do, and while we can't say that everyone completely agrees, there is a certain consistency in taste that arises generally - and importantly - throughout the world. When you think about it, there is a general throughline within which we agree on this. Thinking about this, I came across a number of studies in which survey research was done internationally - related to different landscape paintings and how different people experienced various outdoor views. And what struck me was that the result of this was an unexpected consistency, in which a singular view was selected by a disproportionately large number of those surveyed as being the most appealing. Think about this. A singular type of view was consistently preferred. Why is this? This is a crucially important subject within the context of basic human understanding - and surprisingly I've never really heard of this subject spoken about much in the fields of landscape architecture or landscape design. We've all read about the 'rules of design' of course, from finding Fibonacci's spiraling ratio repeated in everything from a flowers corolla to the Crab nebula. We've wondered at the proportions of Leonardo's 'Vitruvian Man' - and some of us have studied architecture and the Palladian ratio of column sizing - and scratched our heads over what makes Frank Lloyd Wright's work so visually stunning - or Japanese gardens to be so contemplative and sublime. The incredible thing to consider here - is that studies will generally show that a disproportionate number of respondents will favorably choose a singular type of view over any other. Why is that? As someone who designs outdoor spaces, I feel like I generally know what I like, but the esoteric question here is, why do I like it? ... is it that I'm trained to find certain types of alignments more beautiful than others? Or is there something deeper and more instinctual at play? Let's talk about this in this - what defines universal beauty in the landscape...References: Jay Appleton and Prospect Refuge Theory: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0272494424001178Kaplan & Kaplan's Preference Model: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169204613002375
  • 56. 56: Tough Customers

    32:57||Season 2, Ep. 56
    Today's topic is Tough customers: Managing problematic landscape design/build clients.Do you have occasional client problems?Why is it important to try to try to anticipate client behavior?You need to have an awareness about the real Impact client disfunction can have on your business.A lack of understanding can create put stress on staff and resources, and cause time to be wastedWithout an ingrained and practiced understanding, you will suffer potential time and financial losses and your professional reputation may suffer...But you can also make lemonade out of lemons - by correcting a problem before it becomes an issue.It almost goes without saying that you could have absolutely screwed something up - and that can set a client off.Let's assume for our purposes that this is NOT the issue - and that you will generally rise to the occasion, take responsibility and notify all parties immediately of any SNAFU. (Of course you will! That's why you are loved by all!)This Episode of the Green Meridian podcast is brought to you by StickyBid.Visit Stickybid.comOne of the best ways to get started or reach that next level with your business is through the first impression you make, and how "polished" your communications are. In just a few seconds, StickyBid can build your business an emotionally compelling "Sell Page" that you can pair with every estimate you send. StickyBid makes it easy and fast to build customized estimates that are branded with your logo. You can even create templated line items for specific designs, consultations, installations, care services, materials or extra charges - regardless of project type.Stickybid helps landscaping designers, landscape installation and outdoor care professionals reel in more customers, close more jobs and manage client communications - using a really easy to use simplified CRM, estimating and invoicing system - basically an integrated tool that you can use right from your phone. Your invoices and automated followups are delivered to your clients - personalized and with your logo. Estimating and billing can be done while you are on the go - faster - and with an online payment system that quickly improves your company cash flow and records client work approvals. It’s a really innovative and simplified tool that lets you create polished estimates and visual “sell pages” in as little as a minute. It also has CRM features for managing leads, tracking customers, and creating and sending invoices right from the Stickybid platform.Check it out. This is a subscription product, but it's being offered for FREE right now to GM podcast listeners and members of the Green Meridian Group.You can get access at https://stickybid.com/ and sign up now at no charge. Use "StickyBid2T". Just go to Stickybid.com and generate your new, branded sell page in less than a minute!__________________________________
  • 55. 55: On Self Respect & Mistakes I Have Made

    37:26||Season 2, Ep. 55
    I am taking a moment to restock my understanding of my career here, with a compilation of missed opportunities, unforced errors and last minute three-point shots that bounced from the rim. Mixed in like oil in a bucket of water - are some thoughts about Joan Didion's brilliant essay "On Self Respect". Joan Didion's essay: "On Self Respect"https://sites.gatech.edu/alexburgin/on-self-respect-by-joan-didion/
  • 54. 54: Hopes, Dreams & Differences of Opinion

    01:01:17||Season 2, Ep. 54
    Welcome to The Green Meridian Podcast, where we dig into the roots of the landscape industry and explore the issues shaping its future. Today, we’re stepping out of the fields and gardens and into the heart of the political landscape - with a timely episode focused on the upcoming election. We are representing both sides of the political divide today - for a lively, balanced (and occasionally unhinged) discussion on the policies, regulations, and economic factors that could impact the landscape industry and the broader environment. Our goal is to foster an open, thoughtful dialogue on how each party’s platform aligns — or clashes — with the interests of green industry professionals. From business regulations and labor laws to environmental policies and climate action, we’ll examine what’s at stake in this election and what it could mean for landscapers, horticulturists, and everyone committed to keeping our spaces vibrant and sustainable.
  • 53. 53: Irrigation Technologies

    59:58||Season 2, Ep. 53
    We are joined by some irrigation experts for this timely Summer discussion, from national irrigation product marketing managers, to some talented technicians - as we discuss the possibilities and pitfalls in marketing water saving irrigation products. Our guests include: Mark Guthrie of Puget Sound's Saving Water Partnership, Bryce Carnehl, Specification Marketing Manager Hunter Industries, Sergio Lopez, Business Development Manager with Horizon Online, Trent Allen, manager of Mist'er Rain, a landscape irrigation installer in the Puget Sound region - and some surprise guests with strong opinions! Check out Mark's handy irrigation "Weekly watering tip" email link here:https://www.savingwater.org/lawn-garden/watering-irrigation/weekly-watering-schedules/
  • 52. 52: Automate Your Marketing

    44:43||Season 2, Ep. 52
    Let's spend some time focusing on the vexing topic of online marketing and how to tailor it to your specific business - at low or no cost.
  • 51. 51: Communicating with Clients about Climate Change

    01:01:28||Season 2, Ep. 51
    From navigating the sudden onset of harsher Summer and Winter weather events, to articulating ideas about lessening the impact of diminishing habitat, landscape professionals need to not only relate the larger climate to what is happening on a specific property, but show and specify new and innovative solutions. From water saving ideas, to pollution limiting drainage solutions, we are in a unique position to contribute a fractional amount to reinforcing a positive change, through design solutions and educating consumers. In this episode, we speak with landscape designers on the East & West coasts about how they approach clients about this critical topic. Now more than ever, it's more important for green industry professionals to be able to speak clearly and convincingly about the effects climate change.References:ASLA Survey: Continued Increase in Demand for Nature-Based Solutions to Climate Change1American Society of Landscape Architects: Biodiversity & Climate Action 101 for Landscape Architects Webinar Series2ASLA Survey: Significant Increase in Demand for Climate Planning and Smart Practices3Landscape Design In Our Time of Climate Change4Climate Change Mitigation and Landscape Architecture5
  • 50. 50: The Seattle Waterfront Park with Andrew tenBrink of Field Operations

    55:04||Season 2, Ep. 50
    On this episode we speak with Andrew tenBrink, the lead landscape architect for the Seattle’s Central Waterfront and Seattle Aquarium Ocean Pavilion.Working with the firm Field Operations, Andrew is responsible for the overall implementation of this incredibly complex and expansive urban renovation, that includes redirecting urban streets, installation of thousands of native plantings and reconstruction of the Seattle seawall, as well as two of the existing waterfront piers and the creation of a new ferry terminal. With an overall massive renovation to the Pike Place Market area and new interactive ecological displays that will allow the viewing of salmon habitat and the reestablishment of kelp forests, the Seattle Waterfront project is an incredible integration of the urban environment with the reestablishment of wildlife habitat and public education about natural ecologies.(See a past episode where we talk to 3 Senior designers with Field Operations)Before leading the design and project management of Seattle’s Central Waterfront and Seattle Aquarium Ocean Pavilion, since 2010, Andrew managed the open space portion of Princeton University’s Lake Campus and the Princeton University Bridge project. His previous work includes the Qianhai’s Guiwan Water Finger Park in Shenzhen, China; Cleveland’s Public Square; and Tongva Park and Ken Genser Square in Santa Monica, CA.Prior to joining Field Operations, Andrew was a designer with EDAW (now part of AECOM), where he worked on various high-profile projects, including Washington D.C.’s Marvin Gaye Park, the National Museum of American History, the Moultrie Courthouse, Woodland Park, and the Potomac Yard Linear Park, as well as New York’s World Trade Center Streetscape. Andrew earned his Master of Landscape Architecture degree with distinction from the Harvard Graduate School of Design and a Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture degree with honors from Purdue University. Join us as we speak with Andrew and discuss these unprecedented scope and complexity of The Seattle’s Central Waterfront and Seattle Aquarium Ocean Pavilion projects!Some additional links:https://waterfrontseattle.org/construction/construction-overviewhttps://waterfrontseattle.org/waterfront-projects/alaskan-wayhttps://www.theurbanist.org/2023/09/30/seattle-waterfront-park-makeover-promises-new-greenway-native-plants-and-public-fishing/https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/editorials/in-waterfront-park-the-seeds-of-a-better-seattle/