The terrible word “bombidarius” has nothing to do with shelters, neither to landfills. Bombidariums are artificial bumblebee houses. And to construct them on the site is quite out of place: bumblebees will grow crops!
Agricultural assistant
In greenhouses, bumblebees are often exploited even in winter.. In the greenhouse, where tomatoes and eggplant bloom, make houses with bumblebees, and they busily fly from flower to flower. In the distant homeland of these representatives of the nightshade family, there are special pollinators, but in our nature, not counting the bumblebee, no one can handle this task – shovel short. Not a bee, no flower fly can reach the deepest nectaries and will not get dirty in pollen, to transfer it to another plant. With the use of bombidaria, greenhouse yields increase dramatically.
reference
About four hundred species of bumblebees. In the text by naming «bumblebee» we call the most mundane species, common in Russia: garden, field, land, horse and some other. Almost all our bumblebees winter only females fertilized at the end of last summer.
How to attract insects for pollination of fruit plants and what is it for?
Why at the moment?
In the spring, barely melting snow, bumblebee females get out of the winter shelter and with businesslike buzz examine the districts in search of a suitable place for the nest. This time, when they poke in every crack, – it's time to offer the bumblebees a comfortable bombidarium. Any small box can serve them. (he will execute the functionthe lure house) with a tube -«bumblebee» (cm. sketch), but there are several important points to consider.
Bombidarium must be knocked together from aged (not new) boards or plywood, so that dampness and pungent odors leave the tree. This is especially true for impregnation., which are used in the manufacture of plywood.
Do not build bombidarias from conifer boards, emitting tar. Bumblebees settle in them extremely reluctantly (who wants to get dirty in tar «fur coat»?).
If you put something inside, the smell of mice, then the probability, what exactly is your decoy house ready to lay bumblebee eggs, will rise sharply. Therefore, if you are lucky and you come across a winter mouse nest in an old felt boot or in rags in the attic, then take away a particle of the material they have gnawed on and put inside the bombidaria. And you can use a litter from a domestic hamster, chinchillas, laboratory white mouse or decorative rat. The thing is, that in the wild nature bumblebees love to settle in the burrows of mice, therefore, they are attracted by a characteristic smell.
Master yourself
The design of bombidaria may be random., depending on skill, artistic taste and entomological knowledge of the author. The principle is simple.: wooden drawer (better with removable cover) wrapped in cellophane and buried in the ground, so that the lid is on the surface. It can be masked with a flat stone or a piece of turf.. It will be convenient to serve the bombidarius, not particularly disturbing its inhabitants. Places, where did you place your bait houses, mark the peg with a catchy colored ribbon.
Sketch: Alexander Khaburgaev
Now it remains to make a detour and inspect from time to time., whether the female settled in the proposed housing? For complete success, the summer must be seen from afar. The bumblebee has such strong reflexes, that she can stubbornly poke into some black spot on a tree or stone, taking it for a seductive hole. But if she found a suitable place, then immediately lay the first batch of eggs. From this moment you can observe the education and development of the newest bumblebee family, which will be fun to work all summer, collecting nectar and pollen. In wax cells, similar to clay jugs, new larvae will quickly develop, reincarnated as winged insects (this final stage of metamorphosis is called «imago»), and at the end of summer, females and males will leave their home and rush to the majestic bumblebee wedding. After mating, the males will die, fertilized females will find a secluded place for wintering, and in the spring everything startedat first.
Bumblebees are very vulnerable, hardly get used to environmental changes and ruthlessly suffer from overgrazing in the steppes or in meadows, the use of chemical plant protection products and simply against environmental pollution. Because if you have a desire, you can help these cute creatures increase their hardworking tribe. In addition, the creation of bombombers and the monitoring of their inhabitants – extremely interesting and hazardous occupation, especially if kids live with you in the country.
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Original Bumblebee
In order to make sure, that the bombidarius is populated, it’s not at all necessary to constantly lift the lid and look inside. You can resort to tricks: lay the letok with a piece of cotton wool or tow light to transparency. If during the check it turned out to be shifted to the side – means, someone is already using. By the way, not only bumblebees have the opportunity to populate a bait house, but also unnecessary guests – ants. Here is your will – endure them or sweep them out of the bombidarius. One thing is clear: bumblebees of such a neighborhood will not tolerate and will not settle under the same roof with their relatives by the genus of Hymenoptera insects.
Having gained some experience in the homeland bumblebeeonly, you can get your winged pets to work for the good of a summer house. In the evening, carefully dig out the house, pick up the phone «bumblebee» and plug the tap hole with a cotton swab. Later transfer your bombidarius to the greenhouse and open the bumblebee's exit. Now for several days in a row its inhabitants will work, pollinating your tomatoes, eggplant and cucumbers. When bumblebees get used to a new place of residence, you can open the window of the greenhouse, so that they fly for a bribe and to other places. See, that it will noticeably affect the yield of greenhouse crops. And if your heart is full of gratitude to shaggy workers, you can thank them with a treat: put honey saucer in front of the bombidarium. Naturally, bumblebees make their own honey. «Bumblebees» convince, as if he is no worse than a bee, it’s simply much smaller and there is no ability to collect this product on an industrial scale.
Some take bombardarias to the site and set them there on poles. Despite the fact that bumblebees are used to settle in land burrows, in high «houses» they quickly put up with reality. Want to – without the help of others, conduct an experiment to remove bombidarii to the desired location in the garden, just remember to often coat the bottom of the pole with solid oil or petroleum jelly. Otherwise, the omnipotent ants will climb into the bombidarius.
Well, the last tip. Every year, when the bombidarius is empty, it should be washed in a solution of potassium permanganate and spilled with boiling water. Similar disinfection work is needed., to get rid of parasites.
How to drive out a bumblebee?
Return the insect to enatural habitat will help the usual and proven way. Bumblebee need to cover with a glass or a small can, then agently slip a card under the container or just a sheet of thick paper. This must be done carefully., so as not to damage the thin legs of the insect. Further – take out a glass, covered with paper, out of the house and release the guest on the nature.
A photo: From the personal archive / Misha Vorobyov
A source: aif.ru