At last! We have leafcutter bees in our garden! We have been busy and traveling, so did not actually see them take some of these leaves for their nests, but we are so happy to see that they have found our garden in any case. We're watching for them now, noting that leafcutter bees are striped like a honey bee, but carry pollen on their abdomens (see image below).
They are solitary bees that cut circular pieces of leaves from plants such as Western redbud, rose and azalea. They then use these pieces to line their nest and also plug the spaces between their egg cells. You can find them nesting in wood, hollow stems from plants, or in other natural cavities. It is easy to encourage them to nest in your garden by providing them with some of these natural materials or even a 'bee hotel': https://beegarden.ucdavis.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/How-to-build-and-use-bee-blocks.pdf
California is home to over 1,600 species of native bees - more than any other state. These bees have evolved to specialize on certain native plants, and play unique roles in our complex ecosystems. Learn more about the types of bees here: https://arboretum.sf.ucdavis.edu/blog/beyond-honey-bee-learn-more-about-california-native-bees
I hope you'll be inspired to grow some native plants to benefit these amazing beneficials!
Happy (native) gardening!
Jennifer
Remember: Never use pesticides. Even the organic ones kill bees that pollinator our plants. Encourage your neighbors to stop using pesticides that will kill your butterflies and bees when they visit those gardens as well. Avoid herbicides which will damage the ecosystem you are trying to build, and pose health risks for humans, too.
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