What does life look like for butterflies and moths before they reach adulthood? In a word: eating! One of my favorite childhood books was The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle (you can watch a charming animated version of the book HERE). In the story, a caterpillar eats and eats before undergoing metamorphosis and emerging as a butterfly. While Carle captured the essence of a caterpillar’s insatiable appetite, he made a …continue reading
Sometimes you need some good news and motivation, and we have some for you today–the western monarch butterfly population has increased! Biologists and volunteers count overwintering monarchs in coastal California each year. During the fall of 2021, the Xerces Society counted nearly 250,000 butterflies compared to less than 2,000 butterflies counted during fall 2020. Although that is merely a sliver of the millions of monarch butterflies that migrated in the 1980s and …continue reading
Did you know that gardening with native plants can save you money and water? It’s true – native plants found in the Eastern Sierra are often drought tolerant and require less maintenance than lawns or high water-use plants. Native plants also attract pollinators like birds and butterflies that are essential for wildflowers and productive gardens. Learn how to design a garden using native plants at ESLT’s free Pollinator Garden Workshop from 10am-1:00pm …continue reading
Monday, August 16th through Friday, August 20th - Participate in California Native Plant Society, Bristlecone Chapter’s Online Plant Sale to purchase your garden’s native plants for the fall season. Invite passing pollinators to your outdoor space! Participants of ESLT's Eastside Pollinator Garden Project will receive their voucher and coupon code ahead of time for up to $125 worth of plants and will be given an earlybird plant sale window. Plant Pick-Up will …continue reading
Today is Saturday, and while you were probably sleeping in, it’s most likely that the bees were too. Have you ever seen a bee nap? Well today, National Pollinator Week Day 6, is dedicated to a little pollinator known for many things, and one of them is their notorious tendency to nap in flowers all dusted with pollen. Have you ever fallen asleep after eating some cake to wake up and find …continue reading
We know what you’re thinking, Hummingbirds are a big topic for such a small bird. With about 15 different species nesting in North America, there are several species that visit during migration. So for National Pollinator Week Day 5 we’re going to celebrate Hummingbirds and keep it simple like simple syrup. Let’s talk about the ones we love to watch in our California landscape – you know, the small bolting creatures that …continue reading
National Pollinator Week Day 4 is all about Leafcutter Bees! Yesterday we gave our attention and support to Mason and Blue Orchard Bees, two species of the Megachilidae family and both very important native pollinators of some of our favorite spring foods. Today, we are not straying too far from these busy little fruit pollinators as we dedicate our Thursday to the Leafcutter Bee. The Leafcutter is also a member of the …continue reading
National Pollinator Week Day 3 is all about Mason Bees, a native species of bee in the Osmia genus and the Megachilidae family. Blue orchard bees are also a mason bee, and sometimes called Orchard Mason Bees. Mason bees are a native species of bee that play an important role in pollinating food plants and for the Blue Orchard, orchard trees. Some of these foods include almonds, …continue reading
National Pollinator Week Day 2 is all about Monarch Butterflies! They are scientifically known as Danaus plexippus, belonging to the Nymphalidae family. As we all well know, the monarch is a crucial and highly studied species of milkweed butterfly and it calls many places home as it migrates throughout North and Central America. These beautifully winged creatures prepare for the cold weather of winter and begin to fly south, from as north …continue reading
female squash bee with pollen, photo by E. Youngsteadt We’re kicking off National Pollinator Week with waffles! Wait, what? Yes, waffles. Not just any waffles though – zucchini waffles! We’re doing this in support of a very specific and extremely helpful bee native to North America: the Squash Bee, belonging to the two Peponapis and Xenoglossa genera. Hearing your garden bed zooming and buzzing more than usual as those squash blossoms bloom? …continue reading