#wild pollinators

[reasonsforhope]

"Next Monday [6/17/24] is the start of National Pollinator Awareness Week, and one Colorado advocacy group is hosting a flower planting drive to rewild Colorado’s meadows, gardens, and just maybe, its children too.

Created by constitutional amendment in 1992, Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) is a state-funded independent board that invests a portion of Colorado Lottery proceeds to help preserve and enhance the state’s parks, trails, wildlife, rivers, and open spaces.

This year, GOCO’s offshoot Generation Wild is distributing over 100,000 free packets of wildflower seeds to collection points at museums, Denver Parks and Rec. offices, and libraries all over the state to encourage kids and families to plant the seeds in their backyards.

The Save the Bees! initiative aims to make the state more beautiful, more ecologically diverse, and more friendly to pollinators.

According to a new report from the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, 20% of Colorado’s bumblebees are now at risk of extinction. Even in a small area like a backyard, planting wildflowers can make a positive impact on the local ecosystem and provide native bees with a healthy place to live.

“The Western Bumblebee population has declined in Colorado by 72%, and we’re calling on kids across Colorado to ‘bee’ the change,” said GOCO Executive Director Jackie Miller.

Named after Generation Wild’s official mascot “Wilder,” the Wilderflower Seed Mix was developed in partnership with Applewood Seed Co. and packets are now available for pickup at designated partner sites including more than 80 Little Free Library boxes.

By distributing 100,000 Wilderflower packets, Generation Wild is providing more than 56 million seeds for planting in every nook and cranny of the state. All seeds are regionally-native to Colorado, which is important for sustaining the living landscape of bees, birds, and other animals.

Additionally, by using flower species adapted to the Mile High climate, landscapers and gardeners need to use less water than if they were tending non-native plants.

“Applewood Seed Co. was excited to jump in and help Generation Wild identify a seed mix that is native to the Colorado region and the American West, containing a diversity of flower species to attract and support Colorado’s pollinator populations,” stated Norm Poppe, CEO of Applewood Seed Co. “We hope efforts like this continue to educate the public on pollinator conservation and the need to protect our native bees and butterflies.”

Concluding her statement Miller firmly stated that children grow up better outside, and if you or a parent you know agree with her, all the information on how to participate in Save the Bees! can be found here on their website, including a map showing all the local pickup points for the Wilderflower Seed Packets."

-via Good News Network, June 13, 2024

[astronicht]

I just said this in a reply, but more concise genre thought: This is the only medieval fantasy novel I've ever read where it's an EARLY -- as in Dark Ages, 600-1100 AD -- medieval fantasy (hilarious genre implications) and it's an incredible ride. I keep telling friends it's like reading Pratchett and catching the puns and references and entire retellings and knowing you've missed stuff that's going to suddenly become clear 10 years from now while you yell.

[thesilicontribesman]

'Pollen-8' Contemporary Outdoor Sculpture and Installation by the artist, Ailsa Magnus, Dundee Botanic Gardens, Scotland

[ginger-by-the-sea]

[punkgardener]

*sports annoumcer voice* WELCOME TO THIS YEARS

MILKWEED PLANTING MARATHON!

*Sparks and pyrotechnics*

HERE WE HAVE A YOUNG CONTESTANT, A PUNK TRYING TO PLANT MILKWEED!

THIS KID MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE OF BUYING MILKWEED FROM A LOCAL GROWER,

BUT!

THEY MADE THE MISTAKE OF BUYING A NON-NATIVE SPECIES! (OHH NO!!!)

NOW THiS ABSOLUTE NERD HAS HAD TO GO AND BUY FROM THE CORRECT BOOTH AND GET THE NATIVE BUTTERFLY MILKWEED (A classic)

UNFORTUNATELY FOR OUR YOUNG CONTESTANT THEY GOT A DEAL FOR THE NON NATIVE MILKWEED AND BOUGHT 4 PLANTS (OW!!)

LEAVING THEM WITH ONLY ENOUGH MONEY FOR 2 NATIVE BUTTERFLY MILKWEED (WHAT WILL THE MONARCHS DO NOW?!?!?)

LUCKILY THIS CONTESTANT LEARNED SOME VALUABLE ADVICE FROM A MORE KNOWLEDGEABLE SENIOR CONTESTANT!

If You Cut The Non Native One Down in AUGUST!! The MONARCHS Won't LAY THEIR EGGS ON THE PLANT! Preserving THEIR MIGRATORY PATTERN!! (OOOHHH!!!!!)

THIS ROOKIE LEARNED A VALUABLE PIECE OF INFORMATION TOO!! NON NATIVE MILKWEEDS ARE LIKE FAST FOOD FOR BUTTERFLIES! THEY CAN STAY A LITTLE AND HELP SUSTAIN THEM ON THEIR JOURNEY, BUT TOO MUCH DEPENDENCE ON THEM, LIKE LATER IN THE SEASON, WILL LEAD TO PROBLEMS!

Thats All TODAY ON

MILKWEED PLANTING MARATHON!!!

[doorixcz]

[maximum-gothic]

[fly-guys]

Custom painted bee boots by me 🌼🐝🌼

[neffiethimble]

today is a good day to bee

[sysig]

Having fun, more and more! (Patreon)

[nncastle]

At the end of May, I tilled a huge section of the front yard and threw down wildflower seeds. I used a few mixes including annuals, a xeric combination, and some perennials. In June, it did not rain so I was out there every day watering the seedlings and keeping them moist. For weeks I wasn't sure if anything would grow, then in July the rains came and the seedlings woke up. They should be taller by now, but I am thrilled with all the little varieties of flowers that have cropped up. It's enchanting to see the bunnies, wild turkeys, and butterflies enjoying the bounty. I imagine that every year this space continues to change as some plants self-seed and others stratify over the winter. I absolutely love the fact that something is growing in an area where even grass had stopped growing.

I think a lot of times people read these articles about planting a meadow and wildflowers but they don't fully grasp the amount of work it actually takes. You can't set it and forget it. All the grass and weeds must be taken out and raked. The preparation of the ground is a chore in itself. Then, after you cast the seeds, they need to be kept moist for germination. Perseverance is the key to gardening, but even more so for growing from seed. It's worth the effort, though. Just look at the beauty!

Here, you can just see the baby bunny on the left.

[vandaliatraveler]

This past January, I made a resolution to get my garden beds to 70 - 75% native plants. My, oh my, that was an ambitious goal. I probably need another year or two to reach that level of coverage. On the other hand, the native wildflower seeds I purchased in January have germinated and produced healthy, vigorous shoots (above). Today, I planted the spreading Jacob’s ladder (Polemonium reptans) in four different beds. I have spots prepared for the rest also, including hairy beardtongue (Penstemon hirsutus), blue-stemmed goldenrod (Solidago caesia), yellow pimpernel (Taenidia integerrima), and wild geranium (Geranium maculatum). The project is at least moving ahead; this coming September, I’ll buy or collect more seeds to plant before the first frost.

[forestgreenivy]

Wild flower patch!

[briaberri]

Rosehall 4: pollinator paradise

Rupturing, rapturous, and free. I dream that the sunspots on Rosehall grounds, shrugged in at the base of the mountains, receive little wind. As such it's a haven for the bees, butterflies, larvae, beetles, and all kinds of life that Elain and their littles explore while Dada carries the youngest behind them.

Can't help but chuckle at the phrasing that 'Elain loves flowers', and perhaps it's intentionally a bit trivializing. If 'Elain loves flowers' and it's meant with meat...she is vested in nurturing thriving, living ecosystems: reciprocal, cycling, and sacred. Can't condescend that...

[kcdrummergirl]

Did u spot the 🐝?

[landwriter]

familiar faces of july, the wildflower seeds i sowed in late may edition!!!