Bumble bee boxes are an innovative and eco-friendly way to boost pollination and improve crop yields. For gardeners and farmers looking to increase productivity without relying solely on natural pollinators, bumble bee boxes offer an easy solution. In this article, we’ll look at what bumble bee boxes are, their benefits, and where to find bumble bee boxes for sale.
What Are Bumble Bee Boxes?
Bumble bee boxes house small colonies of live bumble bees (usually the common eastern bumblebee, Bombus impatiens). They come in the form of bee hives or nesting boxes. The boxes contain a queen bumble bee, workers brood (eggs larvae, pupae), and food stores.
Once introduced into a greenhouse or other growing area, the worker bees emerge from the box and get busy pollinating the crops and plants around them After pollinating, the bees return to their box. The boxes are designed specifically for crop pollination and to provide bumble bees with a healthy and protective home
Benefits of Using Bumble Bee Boxes
Using bumble bee boxes offers numerous advantages over relying solely on natural pollinators or having to hand pollinate crops:
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Increased Pollination Rates – Bumble bees are excellent pollinators. They can visit many more flowers per minute compared to other pollinators like honey bees. The focused pollinating activity of the worker bees greatly improves pollination.
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Higher Crop Yields – With better pollination comes increased fruit and vegetable yields Well-pollinated plants produce more abundant and higher quality fruits and vegetables
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Labor Savings – No need to hand pollinate! The bumble bees do the work for you.
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Weather Independent Pollination – Bumble bees actively fly and forage in cooler and cloudier weather than honey bees. Their pollination is not impacted as much by adverse weather conditions.
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Targeted Pollination – Bumble bee boxes allow you to strategically place pollinators right where you need them most. Moving hives around and targeting specific crops or rows is simple.
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Environmentally Friendly – Using bumble bees supports pollinators and sustainable agriculture. It’s a natural solution.
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Cost Effective – Purchasing bumble bee boxes is affordable compared to the value of increased yields and labor savings.
Where to Find Bumble Bee Boxes for Sale
Bumble bee boxes can be purchased from a few specialty retailers online. Here are some top places to buy:
Arbico Organics
Arbico Organics offers two types of bumble bee boxes – the Natupol Excel and Natupol Excel Startup.
The Natupol Excel contains 75-100 worker bees and is best for consistent pollination over an extended period of 9 weeks or more. It reaches peak efficiency more slowly.
The Natupol Excel Startup contains 100-125 bees and is designed for heavy pollination over a shorter 7-8 week period. It reaches peak pollination rapidly right after setup.
Both hive types contain a single bumble bee colony and queen. Arbico Organics provides detailed instructions on how to set up and care for the hives. They ship via UPS Next Day delivery.
Planet Natural
Planet Natural is another online retailer offering bumble bee boxes for pollination. They carry the Natupol line of bumble bee hives.
You can choose between the standard Natupol hive or the Natupol Startup hive. The standard hive contains 45-60 worker bees while the Startup has 100-125. Planet Natural provides guidance on how to use the hives for optimal pollination.
Bumble Bee Box Co
Bumble Bee Box Co offers a wide selection of small boxed containers and packaging. Although they do not sell actual bumble bee hives, they do have many creative bumble bee themed boxes and party supplies.
These whimsical bumble bee boxes make great gift boxes, favor boxes for parties, packaging for homemade food items or crafts, and more.
Start Benefiting from Bumble Bee Boxes
Bumble bee boxes are an easy way to give your greenhouse or garden a productive pollination boost. A small investment in a bumble bee hive or two can lead to bigger, better yields and healthier plants. Visit Arbico Organics, Planet Natural or Bumble Bee Box Co to order your bumble bee boxes today!
Do bumblebees leave their nest in a swarm?
No. If you see a swarm of hundreds or thousands of bees, this is a honeybee swarm and you should contact a local beekeeper for advice.
If you have a Tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) nest nearby, you may see a cloud of around 20 bumblebees flying around outside the nest entrance. These are male bees and all they are doing is waiting for new queens to emerge so that they can mate with them. This is very distinctive behaviour and can worry people so it’s worth knowing that male bumblebees do not have a sting and they can’t hurt you even if they wanted to. They are only interested in new queens and this behaviour signals that this nest is nearing its end. This behaviour should only last a couple of weeks at most.
You can see this behaviour in action in this video of male Tree bumblebees outside a nest entrance.
What do bumblebees look for in a nest site?
Most bumblebee queens look for dry, enclosed spaces which have some sort of insulating material already inside. Nests can be found in all sorts of unexpected places but, in general, bumblebees avoid wet areas and locations that get lots of sun as this can heat the nest up too much.
Some species are commonly found nesting underground, in places such as abandoned rodent holes, under sheds and in compost heaps. Others prefer to be on the surface of the ground and make nests in thick grass or mossy vegetation. There are also some species which tend to be found nesting a little higher up in bird boxes, roof spaces, wall cavities and even in tree holes.
Unpacking Bumblebee Hive @ March Farm Greenhouses
FAQ
Can you buy a bumblebee colony?
Bumblebee Hives ship Monday through Thursday and have a LEAD TIME. SEE SHIPPING TAB FOR DETAILS. Boost pollination rates and improve yields in greenhouses and indoor growing with these hard-working bumble bees.
Where to place a bumble bee box?
… weatherproof, so they need to be placed under cover i.e. in a greenhouse with the door / vents open OR they can be placed inside one of our wooden shelters …
How long does a bumblebee hive last?
A colony only lasts a single season, and once the new queens are produced the workers, males and old queen will all die.Jun 11, 2015
Is there a shortage of bumble bees?
The year 2024 has officially been declared “the worst year for bumblebees since records began” by the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. While out in the field surveying pollinators across southern England, GWCT researchers also noticed a shocking decline in bee numbers compared to previous years.