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When giving earth-friendly gifts, it's important to think outside the box. Because let's face it—reusable water bottles, bags, and straws are fantastic, but your nature-loving friends and family probably already have this stuff.You want to gift items that people will love, find useful, and that they can use for many years instead of stuff they'll tire of and quickly replace or discard. While that's always the goal with gift-giving, it's especially true with bee-friendly gifts. This year, show yo …

Each month our Bee Informed Blog highlights current news, science, and research related to solitary bee conservation, food insecurity, and sustainability.1. "New unusual bee species discovered with dog-like snout"(Phys.org) A new native bee species with a dog-like "snout" has been discovered in Perth bushland though Curtin-led research that sheds new light on our most important pollinators.Published in the Journal of Hymenoptera Research, author Dr. Kit Prendergast, from the Curtin School of Mol …

During the 2022 harvesting season, some mason bee raisers in the pacific northwest noticed that a few mason bees had already emerged from their cocoons. Early emergence tells us that the bees have already consumed most of their stored fats (energy), which usually doesn't occur until spring.The early emergence of mason bees is likely due to the higher-than-average, extended summer temperatures we had in the summer and fall of 2022. When we have higher-than-average summer temperatures, the speed o …

Each month our Bee Informed Blog highlights current news, science, and research related to solitary bee conservation, food insecurity, and sustainability.1. "Students raising mason bees at Orcas School"(The Islands' Sounder) Orcas Master Gardeners Dray Longdon, Laura Walker, Tony Suruda and Nancy Forker visited the Orcas School Garden on Oct. 6 to help the 5th-grade students harvest cocoons of mason bees and prepare them for winter storage. Mason bees are native pollinators that nest in cavities …

Just as you winterize your home to make it more efficient, you can do the same for your garden. Properly winterizing your garden will help your plots rejuvenate naturally and reduce the amount of work you'll have to do in the spring, allowing you to jump right into the fun part, PLANTING!Before we jump into our tips, you may wonder if sustainable gardening is essential for small backyard gardens. Using sustainable gardening practices, we become examples for future generations of gardeners by sho …