Many Different Pollinators
This summer, we’ve had SO many bees, hornets and yellowjackets in our little part of the universe.
Every morning, flowers were absolutely covered with them. There were SO many different kinds of bees, ranging from the barely visible to the big ol’ bumblebees.
They were drawn to different types of flowers. And they were all working hard (when they weren’t taken naps), collecting pollen, ensuring seeds were rendered viable and fruit was set.
The bees were flourishing. As is our garden.
(smiles)
Ironically, I have only seen about one or two honeybees this year. If the Dear Wonderful Hubby and I had focused on only attracting them to our gardens, we and our plants would have been out of luck. The other bees saved our harvests.
Attract as many pollinators as you can. You never know who will show up!
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If You Want The Butterflies…
(The chicken wire ‘domes’ over these marigolds stop the squirrels from happily digging up the plants. The Mafia Squirrels do that for ‘funsies’, taking out entire rows in one session and leaving the dying plants beside their trenches so I can see their handiwork. – eye roll)
I often repeat the saying, “If you want the butterflies, you have to feed the caterpillars.”
This is true for bees also, all types of bees, and other beneficial insects.
We have to create homes and supply food sources for them.
We do a few easy things in the Sax household to help facilitate this.
We leave some leaves on the ground for bees and other insects to overwinter in.
We have some perennial plants we try not to disturb very much. This allows bees to create safe homes around these plants.
(The yellow jackets, for example, build homes around the raspberry bushes.)
We also don’t plant or dig close to fences and other structures as these are great homes for bees also.
We don’t use herbicides or pesticides (these are outlawed in Toronto).
We plant extra vegetables and allow the caterpillars to eat some of those plants (or bits of the rose bushes).
We allow the dandelions to bloom. In our part of the universe, these are usually the first flowers to appear and the bumblebees LOVE them.
We also plant a lot of other bee and butterfly-friendly flowers like marigolds, zinnias and clover.
We’re having our best bee year ever in our neighborhood and I like to think all these actions contributed a little bit toward that.
(smiles)
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March, Spring And Gardening
The first day of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere is March 20th. But, in my section of the hemisphere, the last frost date has been May 11th at the earliest.
What will be the last frost date this year? I don’t know. If I had to guess, I would say earlier than May 11th. Climate change has been hitting us hard. We had more rain than snow over the winter. It was…bizarre.
I won’t be planting much until May 11th, however, just to be cautious.
Before that date, I’ll be working on improving the soil. I’ll turn the leaf mulch and the compost, spread some manure, making the worms and insects happy.
The dandelions are already flowering, which is great for the bumblebees when they emerge from their underground homes. They’ll have a source of food.
There is much to do before planting and that gives me joy.
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Raw Desires
His human female is attempting to kill him.
This cyborg finds that adorable.
Raw, a K model cyborg, is one of the lucky warriors who has located his genetic match. He hears his human female’s voice over the communication lines and immediately processes she is his.
Winning her affections will be a greater challenge. Battle has always been Raw’s focus. The rough-and-tough warrior has no idea how to engage anyone’s tender emotions.
Fortunately, he isn’t alone in the universe. His unmatched male friends help him craft a plan.
All Raw has to do is relay a few unsettlingly sweet words to his female and give her the thoroughly unfunctional wall decoration he has obtained. He projects she will then jump into his big, strong arms and beg him to claim her.
Taytu isn’t jumping anywhere. She has one mission—kill every cyborg in existence.
The huge, handsome male traveling to meet with her is her first target. His rough hands, firm lips, and sparkling, energy-infused eyes won’t save him from her vengeance. She has trained vigorously for this moment, and she won’t fail at her assigned task.
The cyborg will die.
Raw Desires is an enemies-to-lovers Cyborg SciFi Romance set in a dark, gritty, sometimes-violent universe.
Buy Today:
Amazon US:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BFG8W5JM
Amazon UK:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0BFG8W5JM
Amazon AUS:
https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B0BFG8W5JM
Apple Books:
https://books.apple.com/us/book/raw-desires/id6443413750
B&N:
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Kobo:
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/raw-desires-2
Smashwords:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1166190
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