Friday, May 20, 2016

Keeping Bees Fed after September

All types of bees (honey, Mason, bumble, etc.) need nectar & pollen for food. However, most flowers in gardens begin fading in September.  But bees are active to December (weather permitting), and they'll start foraging again in January (weather permitting). So the best plants for your garden (if you want to help bees) are late bloomers.  Using the site www.Wildflower.org, here's a list of late-blooming wildflowers that are native to the mid-Atlantic, especially Virginia.  Plant some of these and keep our pollinators fed!  Our honeybees say, "Thanks!" 
Credit

Asters

Bee Balm (Bergamot)

Blue Mistflower

Cardinal Flower

Carolina Phlox

Coneflowers

Great Blue Lobelia

Appalachian Bugbane

Wild Geraniums

Witch Hazel

Friday, May 6, 2016

Get Ready for the Cicadas!

It's that time again when the cicadas descend upon the Mid-Atlantic region. Technically, they will ascend, crawling out of the soil next month for what is expected to be their 17-year mating cycle. Get ready for the cacophony in the trees as these bugs try to impress their mates and the crunching underfoot (yes, it can be unnerving). But don't be turned off by cicadas. They won't decimate our veggies like locust.


Image courtesy of Wikipedia

Cicadas are fascinating little creatures, and not well understood. Yet they have a lot of meanings and symbolize immortality, rebirth, love, and good luck. You can even eat them, like in East Africa, where cicadas are considered a delicacy.

Since we will all see them in the coming weeks, whether in the garden or underfoot, here are some FAQs about cicadas and the 17-year cycle in the Northern Virginia area:
  • Cicadas can’t chew so they don’t devour our plants and trees. They suck sap, but generally not enough to do any long-term damage to mature vegetation. 
  • A single generation of cicadas can reach a density of 1.5 million cicadas an acre in some areas. 
  • The adults live above ground for four to six weeks focused solely on mating and laying eggs (that won't hatch for 17 years!). 
  • The sound you hear when the cicadas emerge is the mating cry sung by males, as they try to find females. 
  • Cicadas begin to emerge when the soil 8" beneath the ground reaches 64 degrees Fahrenheit. 
  • Cicadas are not really related to the locusts that we tend to compare them to. They are more closely related to leafhoppers and spittlebugs. 
  • Twelve of the 15 known cicada broods emerge from the ground after 17 years. The other three emerge after 13 years. The two types will only emerge together once every 221 years. 


Sources:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/its-prime-time-for-cicadas-natures-numerical-nerds-1462535749

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/04/15/billions-of-cicadas-will-descend-upon-the-northeastern-united-states-as-another-17-year-cycle-conclude/?hpid=hp_no-name_morning-mix-story-h%3Ahomepage%2Fstory

http://www.insidenova.com/news/local/northernva/fascinating-facts-about-cicadas/article_f9a8fda6-bdda-11e2-96d8-001a4bcf887a.html

http://www.gardensalive.com/product/the-cicadas-are-coming-the-cicadas-are-coming/you_bet_your_garden