How to make a bumble bee nest box (bumble bee house) Part 1

bumble bees are important pollinators around the world. Many bumble bee species are more rare than they were 50 years ago. To help support bumble bee populations in your neighborhood, we suggest you first plant flowers. Second, you can try building a next box for them.
Visit our blog for detailed instructions and to download the pattern.

I case you are interested, the background music is is by the band my brother and I started in high school 20 years ago, it was called "skook."

[TheWriterBeing]

I’m going to build one or two my self. I’m in New Zealand so it sounds like a great way to save the bb population.

[deborahduncan]

Two years ago I had bumble bees next in a low hanging bird house. It was AMAZING to watch them go in and out and have flight lessons for the young bumblebees. The young bees would come out of the house, and practice their wings. If they sat too long, the older bumblebees would push them off. They would fly around the house a couple go times and then go back in. I hung the same house in the same spot las year, but they did not return. I am going to make a couple of these for my yard and give item a try. Thank you for sharing.

[VictorFursovEntomologist]

Thank you for interesting video. Best wishes and great respect to the entomologists and devoted beekeepers and bumble-bee keepers!

[jetjockeybearup]

Pre drill and countersink your screw holes. The drywall screws will rust and will often snap off when attempting to remove after being outdoors. Use a forstner bit clamped to a sacrificial backing board to drill your openings without blowout.

[sarahalexandra]

I have four species as well. They like to nest in this morning glory in my yard. There are lots of mice in there too. I throw my old wildflowers and grass clippings in it so they have more cover. The hunts bumble bee is the type that I know nested there.

[joweaver]

I have a nest somewhere close NZ, they are fascinating, although they sometimes get lost heading home, I find myself, keeping windows open so they can exit either side of home and shutting curtains.
Their homing skills are incredible similar to a landing drone, before landing their height is whatever is recommended.
With bumblebees their height to pass the house is set, but the verandah stumps them. Hence coming inside. After panic time has subsided they spend time bumping the ceiling wondering why their height can't be reached.
Beautiful bumblebees.

[catsporcupine]

Great video. The orange-rumped bumblebees treated themselves to our bird feeder last year and loved that location. This year they have moved to the back of the property and we now have baby birds in the birdhouse.

[Celal]

Thank you. I will do one early in the morning. One bumblebee is looking for nesting place for days. I made house for her but couldn’t think of putting cotton nesting material in it. I put some hays and she didn’t like it. I hope I am not too late.

[oilimrios]

Hi, I found your video and it’s very interesting the comment you made about the studies and the mice. I live in El Salvador. I have a huge passion fruit I planted. I read a study made in Argentina about how bumblebees are the best pollinators for this plant due to its size. They walk around the flower and pollen gets on their back and easily taken to other flowers. After I read that I started to look for bumblebees in my garden. I don’t know their scientific names. But, there are some big black one that get to my passion flowers and there are some other ones a bit smaller with yellow marks that come to my dogs poop. In the morning when I’m collecting their poop to be trashed, I notice most of the time this bumblebee on them. And if I pick the poop, the poor little guy would be flying everywhere looking for it. So, I did some search and read that they use the poop, take them to their colonies and that way avoid other predators from getting in their nests. So, I wonder if the mice poop had something to do on those bumblebees that used boxes that had mice before? Just wondering and sharing my experience!

[elizzievb]

Hello! It's May 8, 2020 and I have found some (maybe) Bombus huntii (based on your picture - I can't clearly identify) nesting in an old birdhouse hanging about 3-1/2 to 4 feet from the ground on a wood fence. I am in Eugene Oregon. I am ecstatic to see them! The birdhouse was never used by birds but it has been used by paper wasps over the years. I didn't look closely the past couple weeks at the bees coming and going because I thought they were just wasps -- but they are these glorious bumbles!! The bumblebees here where I live are just gone over the past several years...I only see one on rare occasions-never bunches like I used to see. Same for the honeybees. Heartbreaking. Hope you see this post!

[UncleHorsee]

Thanks, I want to build two: wood and pot! Hope Cali Bumblebee will hang around

[davemiller]

In my yard (SW Washington state), bumble bees have nested in the following places: 1) in the dashboard of a mostly buried abandoned car (long story); 2) under a thick piece of plywood which had been laying on the ground for a few years; 3) under cardboard sheet mulch (with no mulch on that part); 4) under a bale of hay which is protected from the rain; 4) under a flat rock which had been excavated by a mole(?). The species were Bombus melanopygus and Bombus vosnesenskii.

[RachellesGardenDiary]

I have seen bumblebees visiting the flowers in my yard. I don't know where they are nesting, but I like the idea of having a nesting box for them as well as for the mason and leaf cutter bees.

[visieraverde]

In the case of my garden, I had placed the bumblebees' nest "drowned" in the bush made up of a lavender plant. Inside the nest I had placed raw sheep's wool.
Unfortunately, employment did not occur within 2 years. I live near a small watercourse whose banks are covered with vegetation mixed with medium-sized stones dedicated to the consolidation of the bank,
I had noticed that the bumblebee queens, at the beginning of the season, flew close to the banks in search of a potentially interesting tunnel.
I will try the version you suggested leaning against a tree.

[antoniusvanegmond]

I have 2 bumble bee nests in my backyard. Just built 2 boxes and moved the nests into them.

[jcraigshelton]

Bumblebees are our only native bees in North America. They also pollinate 200x more plants than do honeybees bee per bee. So it’s important to maintain habitat and give them the best chance possible for survival. Thanks for the video!

[retrochristmas]

I like bees. So chill just doing there thing. When they are pollinating you can pet them they don't care xD

[Golfnut_]

Recommendation... Drill pilot holes for the screws. It will keep the wood from splitting.

[praks]

Very well done! I am going to try making a couple of these. Thanks very much for putting this together!!

[dan.j.boydzkreationz]

I live in Christchurch, New Zealand. I live in a shack that used to be a small mobile theatre stage. There's been bumblebees in my back wall, but unfortunately the structure also attracts mice, who eat the bumblebees.
A house like the one you've shown here may really help this dilemma.