More than two-thirds of our food crops depend on bees. But Canada, like the rest of the world, is losing its bees to habitat loss, pesticides, climate change and disease. Honey bees have loyal keepers to speak for them. Wild native bees need a voice too. You can be their voice.
Community gardens, parks and landscaped areas are important places for wild native bees. Canada has more than 800 species of wild, native bees 40 of which are bumble bees. Your own backyard could have 50 different species of wild native bees.
Gardens provide critical habitats for wild, native bees and to help protect them, we must change gardening practices. By taking a “Let It Bee” approach, we can make our gardens into safe places where bees can thrive in any season.
Here are four easy fall actions to make the most of this great planting season and reduce your garden clean up:
I will make the bees a safe and friendly home in my yard or on my balcony by changing my gardening practices and learning how to “Let It Bee”.
Sign the Pledge(August 2, 2016 podcast) Bee expert Professor Sheila Colla, York University tells CBC Ontario Morning host Wei Chen, more about the decline of the Rusty-patched bumble bee and the Friends of the Earth Bee Cause Team and Fletcher Wildlife Garden's senior volunteer are out counting bumble bees and talk about the importance of the Great Canadian Bumble Bee Count. Bumble bees are at their peak right now. Come on out and take a bumble bee picture for the Great Canadian Bumble Bee Count. Listen to the podcast from 18:30.
CBC News-Ottawa reporter Simon Gardner joined the Friends of the Earth Bee Cause team at Fletcher Wildlife Garden to learn more about the Great Canadian Bumble Bee Count. Read the article here.
Everyone has heard about bee declines, but with so much attention focused on domesticated honeybees, someone has to speak up for the 4,000 species of native bees in North America. Natural history photographer Clay Bolt is on a multi-year quest to tell the stories of our native bees, and one elusive species – the Rusty-patched Bumble Bee – has become his white whale. Traveling from state to state in search of the Rusty-patched, he meets the scientists and conservationists working tirelessly to preserve it. Clay’s journey finally brings him to Wisconsin, where he comes face to face with his quarry and discovers an answer to the question that has been nagging him: why save a species? View the video here.
Thank you to everyone who #LetItBee through October! If you haven't had a chance, you can still #LetItBee today: https://t.co/HiYfW56BPF 🐝
RT @EcoSpark_Env: Here are some steps you can take to make your yard/balcony a friendlier one for our native bees! https://t.co/NHUe5GrMYB
Don't forget – you still have time to #LetItBee for me & my buzzing buddies so we can hibernate in helpful habitats… https://t.co/flNyYXJtI3
RT @leaf: This is what we aim for. Thanks @yshakya for planting and sharing! @opg @TorontoPFR @PFRPartnerships @TorontoHydro @WildBeeTweets…
RT @Victoria59L: @WildBeeTweets @bumblebeewatch @FrankFerragine Seems like humans still infringe on bees. ❤️your Bees🐝🐝#bees #BeeHive https…
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