Road verges have been in the news of late. There is a growing realisation that these areas, if managed sympathetically for nature, can be places where wildflowers and wildlife can flourish, and high on the list of potential beneficiaries are pollinators. Much of what you may have read or seen will doubtless have been centred […]
Homeowners with small yards or apartment dwellers with balconies may wonder what role they can play in supporting pollinators. The good news is that by selecting smaller sizes of woody plants and making creative use of containers, gardeners with limited space can enjoy appealing landscapes that attract a wide variety of these creatures.
via Small Space Gardening for Pollinators — Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia
Learn about endangered pollinators from this beautiful graphic.
via Endangered Pollinators Poster — Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia
And it’s Pollinator Week in Virginia, too! June 17-23, 2019
via It’s National Pollinator Week! — Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia
The sight of large numbers of dead or dying bumblebees on the ground may be alarming, but the phenomenon is fairly common and usually not related to human actions, and as Athayde Tonhasca reveals, there are several natural causes of bumblebee mass mortality. Normal life cycle. Worker bumblebees have relatively short lives — four weeks […]
It was around this time of year, back in 1986, that Creag Meagaidh was declared a National Nature Reserve. Many people will know it as a reserve in which mountain terrain features heavily. And whilst that’s true, this can at times overshadow the merits of the lower stretches of the reserve where fabulous tracts of […]
via Creag Meagaidh – thinking big for pollinators — Scottish pollinators
As I’m writing this blog, with the windows open, I can hear lawn mowers up and down the street cutting away. We have decided to join ‘Say No to the Mow‘ during May, although we haven’t actually cut the lawn this year. I’ve already noticed a few differences in the garden. I hadn’t seen a […]
via Say No to the Mow in May — Appleton Wildlife Diary by Alex White
Of all the bumblebees in Scotland – and at the last count there were around 22 species – the Great Yellow is the one that gives greatest cause for concern. One hundred years ago the Great Yellow Bumblebee was found in many places across Britain, today it is confined to Scotland. Even then it is […]
Providing for pollinators is a nationwide drive as far as Scotland is concerned. From the Scottish Borders, to the Northern and Western Isles, there are plenty of projects underway to help our hard-pressed pollinators. Take Orkney for example. Orkney Islands Council is working in partnership with the Orkney Alcohol Counselling and Advisory Service (OACAS) and […]
The loss of many farmland hedgerows shortly after the Second World War was disastrous for pollinating insects in our rural landscape. Flowering hedgerows are excellent for food, shelter and nesting sites, as well as providing a safe and convenient corridor for ease of movement. Rural communities lamented the loss of the flowers which were a […]
