A FUN AND EDUCATIONAL AFTERNOON ABOUT MASON BEES FOR BACKYARD GARDENERS



WHEN: October 3rd @ 2pm.
WHERE: Historic Valentown Museum, Victor, New York
WHAT: A presentation of raising gentle mason bees for back yard gardeners will be presented at the museum, followed by an optional private guided tour of the museum. This event requires registration, availability is limited and open to adults and children 12 and older.

Please note that the museum's structure was built in the late 1800's and has no heat or AC, so it will be important to dress according to the weather that day. The presentation will include lecture, along with some video, handouts, displays and hands on demonstration of harvesting mason bees along with a question & answer period.

Additionally, please be aware that the optional tour (following the mason bee presentation), requires stair climbs which are not handicap accessible. Tour registration is $6.00 per person, so when checking out be sure to indicate the number of people including yourself who will be taking the private guided tour.

The museum will not be open to the general public that day, nor to unregistered drop ins.

In the situation where the presentation registrations are full, please stay tuned as another presentation may be offered in the spring. If you were unable to register for this event, and would be interested in attending one in the spring, please email webmaster@historicvalentownmuseum.org to be added to a list of potential attendees for another presentation.

Thanks as always for your interest in sustainable gardening, bees and Historic Valentown Museum!

100% of proceeds go to Historic Valentown Museum.







EVENT FOLLOW UP:

We had a lovely time at the Mason Bee presentation. To find out more, check out:
http://historicvalentownmuseum.org/mediagallery/album.php?aid=26&page=1


We had some good feedback , too!
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"Hi,
I went to the presentation to learn more about bees. I’m not looking to start raising them as I’m still in the learning phase.
I think it would be helpful to start the presentation with some background on why raising Mason bees is a good idea. That would have helped me to see the big picture better. The information you shared was interesting and I did feel like I learned a lot from it.
The only thing I knew about Valentown was that they used to hold an antique show there so it was good to get more information about the place and it’s background.
Thank you for doing the presentation. - Lou
"
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"Hi Lynne

I thought your presentation was great! I knew very little about mason bees and this was such a help in gaining more knowledge. I liked how you had some live video in the Powerpoint to illustrate mason bee behavior. I also appreciated the recap slides to review what you had just presented. there was one slide whose type was so small I could not read (and at that point the mike was not in use so I did not get all of what you described here (the problems with hearing loss!). I really liked you showing us the different mason bee 'houses', the tubes and blocks you can use and also how you harvested the cocoons. I'm excited to try my hand at raising mason bees next season.

[... (thoughts about presenting during COVID v.s. online presentation)...]

Kathryn was great and I really enjoyed hearing about the history of Valentown and how it evolved with Sheldon Fisher and seeing all three floors of the Museum. I stayed for a while after the tour and Kathryn and the other gentleman talked about the other structures and land on the property. I also read up on Sheldon when I got home. He was one amazing person with all that he accomplished during his life - from Ganondagan to first town historian to Valentown Museum and all the rest in between!

Thanks so much for offering this to us!

Megan"

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"Hi, Lynne. Thank you for being so generous with your time and information yesterday. I truly enjoyed being with others who also appreciate (and certainly know much more about) mason bees. I left feeling so much respect for these bees and wanting even more to do everything I can to help them be successful. And I feel much more informed about how to do that, thanks to you.

I think it was very clear that you spent a great deal of time preparing for the presentation. I liked being able to see you harvest them and seeing the different materials you use. You spoke from a place of experience, and I really appreciated that. I also liked having this in the fall, although I do think it’s a great idea to do another one in the spring.

Thanks again for a wonderful presentation and for the generous offer of free admission in the spring. And thank you, as well, for the beautiful bee wine charm. I adore it!

Mostly, I am glad to have found another mason new person and hope to learn more from you in the future.

Ashlee"