If you’re a gardener or even just concerned about the flora and fauna in your area, providing a source of water for bees and other pollinators is one way you can help our pollinators. Here’s how to create an easy, DIY bee watering station for our fuzzy friends.

Why Do We Need Bees?

Bees are an essential part of our eco-system. Without bees, the human diet would truly suffer. We rely on bees to pollinate all kinds of foods like almonds, apples, avocados and even coffee!

Both honey bees and wild bees are important to our ecosystem. According to the USGS, “In almost all crops, native bees are the primary pollinator or they significantly supplement the activity of honey bees. Even crops like cotton, soybeans, and peppers that don’t need a pollinator have a higher yield if they’re visited by bees.”

Unfortunately, bees are in danger. According to the Center for Biological Diversity, more than half of North America’s 4,000 native bee species are in decline. And one in four species is at risk of extinction.

Why Do You need a DIY Bee Watering Station?

Bees require water not only for hydration, but also for maintaining hive humidity and cooling the hive during hot weather.

In urban areas, bees may find difficulty finding clean water sources. You can help them by providing a watering station in your backyard, garden or even just on your apartment balcony!

Materials Needed for a DIY Bee Watering Station

Bees prefer shallow, stagnant water, so this watering station is based on that idea. The rocks, marbles or pebbles are essential because bees can drown if the water is too deep.

This watering station also uses materials that you probably already have on hand. Some folks even just put out clean milk caps filled with water for the bees, if you want to keep it even simpler!

• An empty and clean plastic or glass jar with a lid
• A shallow dish
• Small rocks, marbles or pebbles
• A hammer and nail or a drill for poking holes

Steps to Making a DIY Bee Watering Station

Step 1:

First, gather your materials and make sure everything is clean. We don’t want our bees getting sick from a dirty jar or dish.

Step 2:

Poke holes in the lid of the jar with a hammer or a drill. This will allow the water to seep out slowly instead of all at once.

Step 3:

Next, fill up your jar with water and place the shallow rocks or pebbles into the shallow dish.

Step 4 (optional):

If you are using a metal lid and you don’t want it to rust, spray it with a clear coat of paint. This is optional.

Step 5:

Flip the jar over onto the rocks and place in a shady spot, so it doesn’t get too hot or become a magnifier. You want the bees to be able to comfortably perch on the rocks and drink to their heart’s delight.

Step 6:

Lastly, monitor the bee watering station for activity and cleanliness. Make sure in the warmer months, it’s always filled up with clean, fresh water– especially in the height of summer.

FAQs: Should I add sugar to the water?

Remember, there’s no need to add sugar to the water. Just keep it fresh! Sugar water can spread disease and it’s junk food! Bees need real nectar from flowers.

What else can I do to help the bees?

Bees need real nectar from flowers, so be sure to plant pollinator-friendly, native plants in your yard too.

What about mosquitos?

The water dish should be shallow enough that mosquitos won’t want to lay their eggs there. The bees just need to perch, they don’t need to submerge themselves! The watering station should also be cleaned frequently– in some areas, this may mean daily, so there’s no time for the mosquito larvae to hatch. Mosquitos generally take anywhere from four days to two weeks to hatch.