The New Green

From the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign

Special thanks to Dr. Gordon Frankie

Large fuzzy bumble bees and busy honey bees with loud buzzing flights are what many people picture when they think “bee.” But researchers have estimated that California and its highly diverse habitats house about 1,500 different species of bees, most of which are natives. While honey bees and bumble bees are social and live in colonies, the vast majority of bees are solitary in nature. Bee research from California could be influential in helping gardens in urban settings everywhere.
Bees visit flowers to collect nectar (carbohydrates to power their flight) and pollen (providing protein, oils and minerals needed by bee larvae). Bees find their favorite flowers by color and scent; a colorful and aromatic native bee garden is pleasing to humans as well. Bees are everywhere; every urban yard has bees whether you know it or not, no matter how beat down or poorly tended.
What can bees do for me?
Here are several reasons for finding bees desirable in your yard: Bees are a critical part of natural environments, and they provide a valuable service to humans when they pollinate our fruit and vegetable plants and wildflowers. Worldwide evidence suggests pollinator populations are declining due many factors, including habitat destruction. Urban areas can provide important habitat for many bee species. Honey bee numbers in North America have been declining over the past 10 years due to parasitic tracheal and Varroa mites; so making space for native bees guards against dependence on a single species. Most native bees are immune from mite attack. Bees are fun to observe! Watch a bee forage, collect pollen or sip nectar from flowers. Bumble bees, large and easy to see, can be approached relatively closely to make observations. Bees, like birds and butterflies and many other animals in our yards, give us a sense of pleasure knowing that wild organisms can make productive use of artificial urban environments.
Aren’t bees dangerous? Don’t they sting?
Most bees don’t sting, and few species defend their nest (bumblebees are an exception). Bees generally only use their stingers in defense. No need to fear being stung if you move slowly and non-aggressively. Only females are capable of stinging (males of all bee species lack this capacity).
What to Plant – An Exotic Question
Bees, especially native bees, are more attracted to native plants than exotics. “Natives” occur naturally in a specific region; they were not introduced either intentionally or unintentionally to the area by humans or animals. Plants and animals native to elsewhere outside a given region are regarded as “exotics.” In a Frankie et al. study (2002), California native plants were at least four times more likely to attract native bees. Why? Many hybrid ornamental varieties have reduced rewards (pollen and nectar) for bees due to commercial attempts to make larger or showy flowers. Multi-petalled roses are an example. Native bees have no historical relationship with exotic plants.
What can you do? Group several “bee” plants together in flowering patches of one meter squared, to increase overall attraction of the site to a greater diversity of bees. Don’t use pesticides in your garden. If you must, use fast-acting, short-residual options, and apply at dusk when pollinators are least active. Create homes for bees! Many of the wild bees you may encounter in your backyard garden make their burrow homes in the soil or in holes in trees. You can also encourage bee-residents by providing nesting blocks.
Bees Love these Plant Families (especially these species)
Asteraceae – Daisy, Aster, Sunflower family (Gaillardia grandiflora, Bidens ferufolia, Coreopsis grandiflora, Cosmos binnatus, Helianthus annuus) Fabaceae – Legume family Lamiaceae – Mint, Lavender, Salvia family (Agastache and Lavandula species, Salvia uliginosa) Polygonaceae – Buckwheat family Rosaceae – Rose, Apple, Cherry, Strawberry, Raspberry family Scrophulariaceae – Snapdragon, Penstemon family (Hebe species, Linaria purpurea)
Other species – Eryngium species (carrot family), Geranium incanum (Geranium family), Phacelia tanacetifolia (waterfall family), Caryopteris species (verbena family), Sedum species
Some of the bees they may invite Bumble bees – social, large, fuzzy, noisy flight, boisterous behavior Honey bees – social, busy, smaller and less fuzzy than bumble bees Other Apidae species – social, large stingless bees Halictid bees – solitary, small black or metallic colored bees, includes sweat bees and nomia bees Megachilid bees – solitary, often metallic blue or black, includes leaf-cutter bees and orchard mason bees
Visit http://nature.Berkeley.edu/urbanbeegardens for more information on urban bee gardening!
Resources:
Frankie, G., Thorp, R., Schindler, M., Ertter, B. and Przybylski, M. 2002. Bees in Berkeley. Fremontia. 30:3-4, p. 50-58.
Cane, J. 2003. Gardening for Native Bees in North America. www.LoganBeeLab.usu.edu, www.loganbeelab.usu.edu/How%20To/CommonName.htm (has a more detailed list of “bee-plants”).
Kemp, W. and Bosch, J. 2001. Bees in Your Backyard. American Bee Journal. March 2001, p. 183-185.
Contact:
North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC)for more information on pollinators and pollinator gardening!
www.nappc.org info@nappc.org
423 Washington St. 5th Fl, San Francisco, CA 94111
(415) 362-1137

This Friday is the annual backyard bird count, where people from all over the country count the birds they run across. It goes from Feb. 13-16th. Counting birds helps answer many questions such as:

* How will this winter’s snow and cold temperatures influence bird populations?
* Where are winter finches and other “irruptive” species that appear in large numbers during some years but not others?
* How will the timing of birds’ migrations compare with past years?
* How are bird diseases, such as West Nile virus, affecting birds in different regions?
* What kinds of differences in bird diversity are apparent in cities versus suburban, rural, and natural areas?
* Are any birds undergoing worrisome declines that point to the need for conservation attention?

Here’s some information for how you can participate.
IT’S AS EASY AS 1, 2, 3!

1. Plan to count birds for at least 15 minutes on one or more days of the count, February 13–16, 2009. You can count for longer than that if you wish! Count birds in as many places and on as many days as you like—one day, two days, or all four days. Submit a separate checklist for each new day. You can also submit more than one checklist per day if you count in other locations on that day.

2. Count the greatest number of individuals of each species that you see together at any one time. You may find it helpful to print out your regional bird checklist to get an idea of the kinds of birds you’re likely to see in your area in February. You could take note of the highest number or each species you see on this checklist.

3. When you’re finished, enter your results through our web page. You’ll see a button marked “Enter Your Checklists!” on the website home page beginning on the first day of the count (February 13, 2009). It will remain active until the deadline for data submission on March 1, 2009.

Some people find it helpful to fill out the form before entering it on the website. By printing it off ahead of time, they know what information they need to be aware of, such as snow depth, for example.

If you’re new to bird watching, you might want to check out our “Learn About Birds” section. You’ll find help with tricky bird identifications, choosing binoculars, bird feeding tips, and much more.

Planting for Knowledge School Seedling Program

Planting and caring for a seedling tree can help young people learn about the natural world and the value of trees in it. DEC’s school seedling program provides New York State’s school students with this experience.

Why Participate?
Most of us recognize the beauty of trees and their many other values. Trees provide food and shelter for wildlife and prevent loss of soil (erosion).

They help protect our streams and lakes by stabilizing soil and using nutrients that would otherwise wash into waterways. Trees help moderate temperature and muffle noise. They even help improve air quality by absorbing some airborne compounds that could be harmful to us, and by breathing out oxygen.

When students plant tree seedlings, they can see for themselves the structure of trees, learn what they need and how they grow. Teachers can use the planting process to discuss the benefits trees provide, while including many subjects that their classes are studying. As seedlings mature, the young trees can be a continuing, personalized way of relating book learning to visible, living examples of what is being taught.

Personal involvement in establishing a grove of trees will help students become aware of their role in protecting the environment. Ultimately, the experience will also help them make intelligent decisions about conservation and use of natural resources.

Who is Eligible?
All schools may participate – public, private or parochial; nursery, elementary, secondary, vocational, college or university. Any school-sponsored organization is also eligible. Planting can be related to a wide variety of scholastic programs – it is not confined to any given subject, purpose or age level.

The department encourages planting on school property so that students can be responsible for the care and protection of the seedlings. Other possible locations are parks, roadsides, public buildings and nursing homes.

What’s Available?
DEC’s Saratoga Tree Nursery will have species of both spruce and pine available for participants in this program, School Seedling Brochure, (pdf, 88kb). Only one of the offered species may be ordered and 50 seedlings of that species will be given to each participating school. You will need 1,800 square feet of open space for 50 seedlings. Each needs a growing space about six feet in diameter.

For schools where planting space is limited, an urban wildlife packet is available. This contains 30 seedlings of shrubs that are particularly attractive to songbirds and, planted six feet apart, require only 900 square feet of open space.

Getting Started:
Get in touch with your Regional Forestry Office for specific information about this program in your area. A forester will be available to advise you on the appropriate species of trees to choose and proper planting technique.
Species available:
White Pine (Pinus strobus): Native long-needled evergreen. Grows best in well-drained soils and reaches heights in excess of 100 feet. Can be planted statewide. Avg. hgt 8″-12″
Norway Spruce (Picea abies): European short-needled evergreen. Will grow in clay and loamy soils and reaches heights in excess of 100 feet. Can be planted in most parts of New York except northern areas. Avg. hgt 12″
White Spruce (Picea glauca): Native short-needled evergreen. Grows in clay and loamy soils and reaches 70 feet at maturity. Can be planted statewide. Avg. hgt 12″
Packet #2: Urban wildlife packet contains a mix of 30 wildlife shrub seedlings. Will grow in clay and loamy soils. Plant varieties of the same kind together to promote pollination and fruiting. Can be planted statewide.
The seedlings you receive will be two or three years old and approximately 8 to 16 inches tall. Shipment will be by UPS, beginning in early April through the second week in May. Select a shipping date at least three days prior to the planting date. Shipping is on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday to avoid weekend warehouse storage.

Planting Instructions
Seedlings are perishable. Follow handling instructions printed on bags to ensure survival.

TOOLS REQUIRED: Shovel and bucket
1. Place the seedlings in a bucket and fill with water until all the roots are covered.
2. Remove all vegetation down to the soil layer for at least one foot around the planting site.
3. Dig a hole large enough to contain the roots.
4. Place the roots of the seedling in the hole and carefully spread them out. The root collar (where roots join the stem) should be at or just below the ground’s surface. The seedling should stand straight.
5. Fill the hole with soil and gently compact the soil to remove air pockets that could dry out the roots.
6. Water the seedling slowly and thoroughly after planting to settle the soil. If rainfall is not adequate, water weekly after planting for the first year.
7. Mark the seedlings with a stake so they won’t be cut off with a lawn mower.
8. Fertilizer is not recommended at planting time. It can be applied two or three years after planting when the root system has developed.

NYS DEC
Saratoga Tree Nursery
2369 Route 50 South
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866-4738

Telephone: (518) 581-1439

I love this t-shirt offered on the Just Food website by designer Jen P. Harris.

These little seedling pots were created by CT dairy farmers as an ingenious way to recycle their cow manure. Read more about them here.

You plant your seedlings in their pots. The roots of the seedlings easily grow through the sides of the pots and are able to be planted directly into the ground, saving them the stress of transplanting. The CowPots break down in the garden soil, but last up to 16 weeks above the soil. This gives the plants plenty of time to grow.

There’s a very interesting article in the Washington Post today that talks about gardeners who are trying to be green by converting their lawns and other non-native plantings to more ecologically sustainable gardens.

In the way that buildings can be certified as ecologically friendly, the Sustainable Sites Initiative is working to set guidelines for landscaping. Click on their link to see some case studies.

What can you do to make your lawn or garden more “green”?

* You can add rain barrels, or other ways of recycling rain for irrigation.

*You can plant native plants that thrive in your climate and don’t need much in the way of fertilizer or watering.

*You can compost your kitchen and yard waste to enrich the soil instead of using chemical fertilizers.

NC State University has a short video and interesting website, which gives some good reasons why to use native plants when landscaping. They give resources for where to find plants native to North Carolina. You can click here to see a list of New York State native plants.

Yesterday I got the second egg from my hen Lulu. In Europe when you go to buy eggs, you don’t find them in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. They sit in big open cartons on the shelf. This makes most Americans squeamish about bacteria, salmonella, and anything else that could make them sick. It’s pretty cold in my apartment, so I think I’m somewhere in the middle of this debate by having them on my kitchen table. I may re-think this in the summer.

I have to admit that I’m having a hard time thinking about eating these eggs. Part of it is the novelty of them. They are pretty, little greenish-gray objects. I hate to admit that I have been so programmed to buy brown or white eggs from a carton in the grocery store, that I’m feeling a little squeamish. Eggs from my backyard? Seems as unlikely as picking fruit off one of my trees. I have been working so hard not to have this cultural programming in my daughter by planting blueberry bushes at her grandparent’s house, going to goat farms, picking wild raspberries and blackberries, eating icicles. She wants me to make her scrambled eggs with these eggs already! I think she will help me get over the preciousness and oddity of homegrown eggs.

Mother Earth News has been testing the nutrients of pastured eggs compared with those of commercial eggs. Pastured eggs meaning that they are eggs from hens that are allowed to roam and supplement their grain-based diet with plants such as grass and insects. Eating plants adds beta carotene to their diet and eating insects benefits almost everyone else.

The pastured eggs contained:
1/3 less cholesterol
1/4 less saturated fat
2/3 more vitamin A
2 times more omega-3 fatty acids
3 times more vitamin E
7 times more beta carotene

That’s pretty impressive. I think I’ll make Lindsay those eggs for breakfast tomorrow!

I am unreasonably excited. After being away this weekend I went to let the hens into their larger run this morning. As a habit, I checked their nest box to see if there was an egg. I’ve been expecting them to start laying for about a month and have been lovingly referring to the girls as a bunch of freeloaders.

Imagine my surprise when I saw a little blue/green egg sitting next to the golf ball. (You put a golf ball or other round object in the next box to give them a subtle hint as to where to lay their eggs) By process of elimination, I think it was Lulu who laid the egg. Andy should lay white eggs, so it was either Lulu or Edie. Lulu’s comb is a much darker red than Edie’s. When hens mature and are ready to lay, their combs turn bright red. So I think Lulu’s the one. I feel like a proud mommy.