There are several considerations, including: limiting moisture, excluding parasites, hygiene, disposability versus durability, convenience, your scale of need, and the bees’ nesting preferences. You can start with 5/16” holes drilled 5-6” deep across the grain in dried bolts of softwood (e.g. spruce, pine, cottonwood). After several years, you should rotate out of this as repeated renesting leads to an accumulation of mites and disease. The USDA-ARS Pollinating Insects Lab web site provides information on acquiring and/or manufacturing several types of nesting materials, including: drilled wooden blocks, cut reeds and stick nests. Go to http://www.ars.usda.gov/Services/Services.htm?modecode=54-28-05-00 and read about these nesting options and how to make them.

-Jim Cane, USDA-ARS and Utah State Univ.

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