Pollinator Week Celebration!

To celebrate National Pollinator Week back in June, the College Park Bee City committee partnered with the newly recognized University of Maryland Bee Campus affiliate and the University of Maryland Office of Community Engagement (OCE) for a film screening of “My Garden of a Thousand Bees.” About 40 attendees enjoyed the movie at the The Clarice, which was filmed in Bristol, England in Martin Dohrn’s backyard, a photographer quarantined during the COVID-19 pandemic and unable to travel. He decided to let his backyard go unmanaged to see what would happen. Dohrn found the naturalized habitat attracted various species of wildlife including birds and insects; he was especially interested in the bees and their activities. He created nesting areas by drilling holes in old pieces of wood and left bare areas of soil to encourage bees to build nests and raise their brood for the summer. In order to even create the film, he had to develop new gadgets to aid in capturing and filming the incredibly small and fast subjects.

After the movie, Sam Droege, wildlife biologist at the United Sates Geological Survey (USGS) Bee Lab at Patuxent Research Refuge, fielded numerous questions from the audience about native bees, nesting requirements, and the roll of the native plant program at the Bee Lab. He reviewed the basics for enhancing pollinator-friendly areas around your home with native plants and decreasing the lawn impact that surrounds your property.

Pollinator Fair at the University of Maryland Arboretum Outreach Center:

The Resource Fair included groups from the Route 1 Pollinator Corridor work group (University Park & Berwyn Heights), various University of Maryland Entomology Department groups, and Bomba (Bowie-Upper Marlboro Beekeeper Association) that showcased their Pollinator related information such as insect specimens for identification, favored plants of native bees, the services honeybees provide to agriculture, gardening with native plants, and preferred habitats for various bee species.

The Bee City committee gave away native plants they helped grow this spring at the USGS Native Seedling Project. Committee members started seeds, grew, and transplanted approximately 1,400 seedlings of several native species donated by the USGS native plants program or other groups from seeds collected last fall. The Committee continues transplanting seedlings to have plants available for the fall.

Attendees that received plants were provided instructions about the specific plant and how to care for their new plant. Pollinator-friendly plants should be planted in the ground and kept watered to encourage establishment. To attract pollinators, provide a water source or moist spot for butterflies and bees with rocks, wood chips, and moss. Water can be left to drip into small pots, or a sunken area daily.

Upcoming Pollinator Event

Plan to attend the upcoming pollinator Meadow Event Day in University Park on July 8th, 10:00am – noon at the Pollinator Meadow on Adelphi Road, which includes a native plant swap and local chapters of environmental organizations and members of the Route 1 Pollinator Corridor work group.

For more information on native plants, visit Maryland Native Plant Society websites.

From College Park Bee City committee