Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Go Canada!

I haven't seen much bee activity yet this season. Has me worried. However, here is the first recorded instance of a ladybug visiting my teeny tiny bee sanctuary!


And here is the second recorded instance of a ladybug visiting my teeny tiny bee sanctuary:

I headed over to Kris' world to check on her bee activity, and found that she is on hiatus from blogging right now (I knew she was overdoing it!) While I was there, I found out about the Great Bee Count on July 16, 2011 and I picked up a pretty good Mother Earth News article that encourages wild gardening in order to help bees.

Meanwhile, good news from Beyond Pesticides about lawn care in much of Canada (I'm so happy!):

"During the past decade, over 150 municipalities and several Canadian provinces —Quebec, Ontario, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick— have banned the use of 'cosmetic' lawn care pesticides because of health and environmental concerns. The bans have had the support of the Canadian medical community, including the Canadian Cancer Society and the Ontario College of Family Physicians. Similar legislation banning lawn pesticides is being considered in British Columbia and Manitoba."

Background info:

"There is a large body of scientific literature that outlines numerous risks of 2,4-D. It has been linked to cancer, reproductive effects, endocrine disruption, kidney and liver damage, is neurotoxic and toxic to beneficial insects (such as bees), earthworms, birds, and fish. Scientific studies have confirmed significantly higher rates of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma for farmers who use 2,4-D than those who don’t; dogs whose owners use 2,4-D on their lawns are more likely to develop canine malignant lymphoma than those whose owners do not. Despite the known health and environmental effects of 2,4-D, it is the top selling herbicide for non-agricultural use, such as lawns, in the United States." (emphasis added)