Folk Arts in Season: Bee House

‘Telling the bees’ is an old folklore tradition that comes from Celtic mythology. It’s still practiced in North American and Europe. It holds the remembrance that honeybees are part of the family and close to their caretakers and keepers. Letting the honeybees know of the death of a family member helps them adapt to the changing scene. 

Elder beekeepers who feel close to their death, often tell their family to be sure to whisper the news of their death to the bees, or sing a song to the bees telling them so. Otherwise it’s not uncommon to have all the honeybees move on elsewhere, or mysteriously die along with their caretaker. In some traditions the honeybees are also informed of marriages and births to include them in knowing about the arrival of new family member. 

These days, there is a remembrance of the importance of solitary bees. They are also essential pollinators. They have no honey or hive, or family so-to-speak and work alone in service. We generally don’t relate to them in the way we do to honeybees, but we can help them greatly by providing a place to stay in times of rain or cold or need of rest. Consider making a solitary bee hotel out of recycled materials to help the population stay strong. Be sure to clean the hotels out regularly to keep away other insects that might disturb the bees.

Creating a house for solitary indigenous bees 

Items needed:

• vessel - plastic bottle, can, mug, or jar
• thick paper bag or paper
• scissors
• pencil
• string

How-to:

1. Cut the paper into appropriate size strips that are measured to fit inside the vessel. 
2. Roll the strips with the pencil to form loose tubes.
3. Fill your vessel with the loose paper tubes.
4. Place string around the vessel in a couple spots to hang it up.