Learn how to build bee houses and motels for our native bees and wasps, and take home your own solitary bee house!

15 participants are required for the workshop to run, with a maximum of 25. Children under 16 participate free with a ticketed adult.

Some may be surprised to learn that most bees do not live in hives; each has its own solitary nest. Solitary bees are are not aggressive and rarely if ever sting unless attacked or stepped upon, and even then their stings are not painful compared to honeybees.

With bee populations in decline, any help we can give them in the form of dry and safe homes for their eggs helps contribute to the survival not just of the bee species, but to all the trees and plants they pollinate as well – not to mention those of us who depend on this crucial ecosystem. In this workshop, participants will have the opportunity to build a solitary bee house before the Autumn weather sets in, helping a new bee emerge in the Spring to carry on their important work as pollinators.

Materials including nesting tubes (cardboard and organic), wooden blocks, a limited amount of wooden boxes and tools for construction will be provided. Participants are encouraged to bring their own wooden boxes such as wine and/or cigar boxes which could be suitable to convert into bee houses.

About the instructor: Ashley Kidner is a Baltimore-based land artist and designer of the Peale’s pollinator garden. Kidner also runs International Landscaping & Design, specializing in pollinator, wildlife and rain gardens.