Texas Bee Watchers

Why You Need To Learn About Bees

Kim — 2012-01-16T17:48:00-06:00

I certainly don't know everything about bees. But I do try to make people more aware of the role bees and other insects play in the environment. It's not always easy to make a bee seem as important as a koala or a polar bear or a whale. Why should you care? Take a look at this article for a deeper understanding. Seven Spineless Impediments.

A Good Career Choice!

Kim — 2012-01-15T17:23:24-06:00

Enjoy this video by a student at UC Davis on her career choice.

Tiny saviors in our backyard

Kim — 2011-12-20T21:03:38-06:00

In 2007, the world was introduced to a plague so disturbing it seemed almost biblical. Out of the blue, honey bees were dropping dead or worse, vanishing into the air by the millions. In the four years since, colony collapse disorder (CCD) has been a regular resident on newspaper front pages as scientists desperately try to puzzle out what’s wrong. via www.universityofcalifornia.edu

Now's the Time to Get Your Bee Calendar

Kim — 2011-12-20T16:56:07-06:00

The “Garden Variety Native Bees of North America” perpetual calendar is both a guide to some of our more common native bees and a gardening calendar that never goes out of date. Included is a two-page introduction to native bees which contains tips on how to create habitat for them in your own backyard. Use the journal portion of this calendar to keep month to month and even year to year comparative garden notes. It’s a great way to record your observations of the bloom times and other characteristics of the bee-friendly plants you include in your garden, along with...

Tests Show Most Store Honey Isn't Honey

Kim — 2011-11-07T16:57:58-06:00

Many Texans pay premium dollars for honey. Vaughn Bryant, TAMU Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Palynology Laboratory and one of the nation's top pollen experts, suggests you may not be getting what you pay for when buying honey at the local store. More than three-fourths of the honey sold in U.S. grocery stores isn't exactly what the bees produce, according to testing done exclusively for Food Safety News. Click below for the rest of the story. via www.foodsafetynews.com

Bees, Dogs, and Sheep all love Shaggy Acres in Boerne

Kim — 2011-09-15T00:30:35-05:00

One of the hazards of being a One-Woman website is that if I get caught up in a family emergency, not much happens on the website until I get the family emergency under control. But one of the joys of being a One-Woman website is that I have some of the greatest and most patient and understanding bee-watcher readers around. Anita Porterfield and her husband, John, first contacted me about their bee garden waaaaay back on July 6. Two and a half months later, I am proud to feature their garden as the 18th Official Certified Texas Bee-Friendly Garden. Anita...

Shared Seeds and Shared Knowledge lead to Texas Bee-Friendly Garden #17

Kim — 2011-06-19T13:55:00-05:00

Just imagine that you just moved into a great house, in a great area, you love to garden, and you love wildlife, native plants, and Texas. And this is what your "yard" looks like on Day One. Well, that's exactly what Joyce Hamilton had when she moved into her home in Harlingen (78552) about 7 years ago. I don't know how much experience Joyce had with gardening, but even an experienced gardener would have been a bit flustered about taking on this task. Bare yard . . . meet Joyce! Joyce sought out and received the help and guidance of...

Bee Garden #16 Provides Watering Hole for Thirsty Native Bees

Kim — 2011-06-18T11:34:28-05:00

Being a Bee Gardener sometimes takes a look of patience. And waiting to get your Bee Garden certified by Texas Bee Watchers sometimes take even more patience. Sondra Brooks from Spicewood, Texas ( 78669) has plenty of patience. She has a garden that welcomes not only our native bees, but also birds, butterflies, frogs, snakes, and a whole herd of other Texas wildlife critters. Sondra lives on 5 acres of rural property hosting Live Oaks, Mesquite, native grasses, etc. Her garden area, which Sondra describes as extensive, is fully enclosed and incorporates a pond visited by bees, birds, butterflies, frogs,...

Birth Announcement at Bee Garden

Kim — 2011-06-14T12:59:07-05:00

Vernon Berger discovered that our Bee Garden Mockingbirds have successfully become parents. Here's the photo of their new babies. We have noticed that the Bee Garden seems to have allowed for increased diversity in the immediate area. Whoopee.

Travis County Squash/Pumpkin Gardeners: Bee alert!

Kim — 2011-06-10T11:33:39-05:00

(photo by Dr. Jack Neff) Do you still have Squash and/or Pumpkins blooming in your vegetable garden? A local bee researcher is looking for gardens (preferably with a lot of squash flowers) in which to look for the cute squash bee (Peponapsis pruinosa). According to our local native bee expert, Dr. Jack Neff, this squash bee presumably was native to Texas and the SE but may have expanded its range greatly in the NE with the spread of cultivation of squash and pumpkins by Native Americans. A researcher is looking to see what, if anything, DNA has to say about...

For Bumblebee Watchers in Texas

Kim — 2011-05-19T14:26:35-05:00

I met Michael Warriner at The Wings Over the Hills Festival in Fredericksburg where he told me about his new website and bumblebee photographing project. Click on over to Texas Bumblebees to see his new website. It's a really nice site with descriptions of all the bumblebees found in Texas, really cool diagrams to help you identify those bumblebees, and a link to a Facebook page where you can post a photo of a bumblebee in your garden. Michael will even try to identify the bee from the photo (so get a good photo of the abdomen). One of the...

Garden #15: Bees And Other Wildlife Find a Welcoming Home.

Kim — 2011-05-09T15:00:45-05:00

Bee on Antelope Horn Pat and Dale Bulla have been proponents of restoring yards to increase wildlife habitat for many years. They are National Wildlife Federation Habitat Stewards. In 2008, they were one of the NWF's Volunteers of the Year. I've seen their name associated with various groups as they have worked to relocate native plants about to be plowed under in order to accommodate a new development or building. They have been instrumental in restoring the gardens at the French Legation in Austin. The list could go on and on. But, for me, what really makes the Bulla's exemplary...

Rocky Land Doesn't Prevent Bee Friendly Garden #14

Kim — 2011-04-05T16:13:46-05:00

Both the National Wildlife Federation and Texas Parks and Wildlife offer programs (Backyard Wildlife Habitat program and Texas Wildscapes) to recognize gardeners and nature enthusiasts who restore their yards so that native wildlife are able to find shelter, food, water, and nesting sites. In some areas of Texas, planting native plants is pretty easy to do, while in other areas, gardeners have to really put some muscle into it. The Hill County of Texas is one of those areas. If it's not the heat, the deer, or the lack of water during some years, it's the rocks! But, Jane Brunlick...

Sweat Bee Photo: Wow!

Kim — 2011-03-26T19:58:38-05:00

Sweat Bee Photo – Animal Wallpaper – National Geographic Photo of the Day.

Reposting: Bluebonnet Spots and Bees

Kim — 2011-03-17T11:30:00-05:00

I've never reposted a previous post before, but a recent discussion elsewhere on the web combined with the beginning of Bluebonnet blooming season here in Texas prompted me to repost this entry I wrote last year on the reasons why bluebonnets have flowers with white spots and flowers with purple spots. It's really quite an interesting story. Enjoy. Just click on the link to be redirected to the original post. Bluebonnet Spots and Bees

Bees Get Lucky in South Texas with Official, Certified, Texas Bee Garden #13

Kim — 2011-03-11T20:36:45-06:00

Edwin J. Cook from McAllen, Texas (78504) emailed me and said he thought his wildscape had what it takes to be be an Official Certified Texas Bee Garden. And, by golly, he was right. In 2008, Ed started restoring his yard. Ed told me that “until three years ago, my yard had only the nonnative trees and shrubs . . . Since 2008, I have added only native shrubs and trees (except the rosemary), and last year, I removed two nonnative trees to make room for a Texas Ebony and a Texas Persimmon (both of which are native flowering trees)....

Go look at your fruit trees today

Kim — 2011-03-01T21:27:18-06:00

Here in Austin, we've had several days of nice warm weather. The redbuds are blooming and some of the fruit trees are already blooming. Go outside, find a fruit tree, and look up. Chances are you will see bees flying all over. Mason bees! If you have a Mason Bee house, now is the time to get it up. Enjoy! It's Bee Season.

It's Finally Bee-Certified in Blanco

Kim — 2011-02-24T23:20:29-06:00

It's been a cold–freezing–winter in Texas this year. I wandered through my yard recently and noticed the damage the prolonged days of freezing weather inflicted on my garden. Some plants may make it and others won't, I'm afraid. So I was feeling sad and then . . . I opened my email and found photos and a plant list for another beautiful Bee Garden. My day got a lot brighter. Sheryl Smith-Rodgers, a blogger, native plant gardener, photographer, and honest-to-goodness author and her husband, James Hearn, have a yard that the bees already love. Back in 2007, Sheryl and James...

Cibolo Bee Garden is Number 11

Kim — 2010-12-28T10:20:23-06:00

Cibolo, Texas is the location for the eleventh Official Certified Texas Bee-Friendly garden. Bridget Cameron sent in these lovely photos of her Bee Garden taken this summer. I am constantly impressed by the way Texans are managing and restoring their yards and land to accommodate and enhance habitat for native bees, as well as native plants and wildlife. Bridget's home sits on land that was once farmed and has now been subdivided for homes–a not-uncommon story. But Bridget has been sowing wildflower seeds ever since she moved in. I'm not sure, but I'm betting that Bridget wasn't aware that her...

Are you as smart as an 8 year old?

Kim — 2010-12-22T17:21:44-06:00

Eight-year-old children publish bee study in Royal Society journal.