Why is My Squash Bitter?

November 8, 2013

Gardening, Seeds, Squash Baby, Vegetable Gardening

...t to save seed and you take the precaution of taping up the flowers, bumblebees and solitary bees can chew their way through the tape to get at the pollen. In short it’s really easy to breed a freak Frankensquash or Frankencucumber, which can actually be toxic. Cynthia, a Root Simple reader in Texas, alerted me to an interesting hazard with bitter out-crossed Cucurbitaceae. According to Tony Glover, regional extension agent at the University of Al...

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Of paper wasps and scrub jays

Mrs. Homegrown

June 2, 2015

Bees, Gardening, Insects, Nature Awareness

15 Comments

...ic, especially if they’re yellow and black striped. After years of keeping bees, we’ve come to learn that many people can’t distinguish a honey bee from a yellow jacket from a wasp–and we won’t even start on the native bees. Yet it pays to be able to do so, because each is quite different, and we can interact peaceably with all of them if we know their ways. Paper wasps, also called umbrella wasps, are those guys who build smallish, open celled ne...

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Saturday Linkages: Crimean Ovens, Ikea Distillery and Pallet Wood

Mr. Homegrown

March 8, 2014

Saturday Linkages

2 Comments

...abinets http://www.naturalbuildingblog.com/pallet-wood-kitchen-cabinets/ … Bees in Danger: California DFA Plans Pesticide Application in Carpinteria, Summerland http://www.noozhawk.com/article/bees_in_danger_california_dfa_plans_pesticide_application_20140303#.UxdqUKHYm88.twitter … How Dangerous Streets Limit People’s Experience of Their Neighborhood http://streetsblog.net/2014/02/28/how-dangerous-streets-limit-peoples-experience-of-their-neighbor...

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How to Make a Bee Skep

Mr. Homegrown

May 10, 2013

Animals, Bees

9 Comments

...oneycomb, skeps are “bounced” over an empty skep to remove the bees. These bees are then combined with weaker hives and overwintered. It’s easy to see, from the hard work and level of skill required, why the modern and much easier to manipulate Langstroth style hive boxes replaced the skep. And skeps are technically illegal in the US as state bee inspectors require hives with moveable frames that can be easily inspected. There are some, however, w...

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All Natural No-Treatment Beekeeping Class at the Ecology Center

Mr. Homegrown

July 25, 2014

Events

4 Comments

...r and enjoy a healthy garden full of pollinators. Understand the basics of bees, all natural beekeeping methods, tools, materials, and techniques to get you started. It’s said that beekeeping, or apiculture, began with the Egyptians whom used logs, boxes, and pottery vessels to make their own bee hives. Today, the practice of beekeeping lives on. Help save a dying species, encourage pollination in your garden, and enjoy raw, organic honey! In this...

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