Master Gardeners of Ventura County
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Master Gardeners of Ventura County

Posts Tagged: The Bee Friendly Garden

Bumble Bee Braking During a Winter Break

You never know what you'll find when you visit a pollinator garden. Take the case of our visit Nov. 12 to the Sonoma Cornerstone, Sonoma, to see the pollinator garden of Kate Frey, an ardent pollinator advocate, world-class garden designer, and...

A queen yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, brakes during a winter break in Sonoma. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A queen yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, brakes during a winter break in Sonoma. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A queen yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, brakes during a winter break in Sonoma. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A Royal Moment with a Queen Bumble Bee

It's Thanksgiving Day and time to give thanks for NOT what we WANT, but what we HAVE. And, not for what we OWN, but what we CANNOT. That includes the yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii. On the morning of Nov. 12, we traveled to the Sonoma...

A queen bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, nectaring on Salvia indigo spires in Kate Frey's pollinator garden on Nov. 12, 2017 at the Sonoma Cornerstone.  (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A queen bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, nectaring on Salvia indigo spires in Kate Frey's pollinator garden on Nov. 12, 2017 at the Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A queen bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, nectaring on Salvia indigo spires in Kate Frey's pollinator garden on Nov. 12, 2017 at the Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The queen Bombus vosnesenskii begins her bumble bee acrobatics in the Kate Frey pollinator garden, Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
The queen Bombus vosnesenskii begins her bumble bee acrobatics in the Kate Frey pollinator garden, Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The queen Bombus vosnesenskii begins her bumble bee acrobatics in the Kate Frey pollinator garden, Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ah, nectar. The queen bumble bee extends her tongue (proboscis). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Ah, nectar. The queen bumble bee extends her tongue (proboscis). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Ah, nectar. The queen bumble bee extends her tongue (proboscis). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Thursday, November 23, 2017 at 2:00 AM

Coming Oct. 7: A Tour of Kate Frey's Bee-utiful Garden

"When's the next public tour of Kate Frey's garden?" That's a question we're often asked and now we have an answer: Saturday, Oct. 7. World-class bee garden designer and pollinator advocate Kate Frey, co-author of The Bee-Friendly Garden" (with UC...

This is the Hopland home of Kate and Ben Frey, featuring gardens by Kate and rustic structures and whimsical art by Ben. (Photo by Kate Frey)
This is the Hopland home of Kate and Ben Frey, featuring gardens by Kate and rustic structures and whimsical art by Ben. (Photo by Kate Frey)

This is the Hopland home of Kate and Ben Frey, featuring gardens by Kate and rustic structures and whimsical art by Ben. (Photo by Kate Frey)

A bumble bee and honey bee share teasel in the Frey gardens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A bumble bee and honey bee share teasel in the Frey gardens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A bumble bee and honey bee share teasel in the Frey gardens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

An inviting path in the Frey gardens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
An inviting path in the Frey gardens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

An inviting path in the Frey gardens. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Posted on Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at 5:07 PM

Kate Frey: How to Attract Pollinators

It's National Pollinator Week and you might be wondering where your pollinators are.  “I'd love to attract honey bees, bumble bees and other pollinators, but what can I do?" you ask. "Where do I start?" So we asked world-class garden...

Award-winning garden designer, author and pollinator specialist Kate Frey addresses a recent crowd at Annie's Annuals and Perennials. Her topic:
Award-winning garden designer, author and pollinator specialist Kate Frey addresses a recent crowd at Annie's Annuals and Perennials. Her topic: "Gardening for Bees, Beauty and Diversity." (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Award-winning garden designer, author and pollinator specialist Kate Frey addresses a recent crowd at Annie's Annuals and Perennials. Her topic: "Gardening for Bees, Beauty and Diversity." (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Following her talk at Annie's Annuals and Perennials, Richmond, Kate Frey (center) answers questions and signs copies of her book,
Following her talk at Annie's Annuals and Perennials, Richmond, Kate Frey (center) answers questions and signs copies of her book,"The Bee Friendly Garden" (co-authored with Professor Gretchen LeBuhn of San Francisco State University). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Following her talk at Annie's Annuals and Perennials, Richmond, Kate Frey (center) answers questions and signs copies of her book,"The Bee Friendly Garden" (co-authored with Professor Gretchen LeBuhn of San Francisco State University). (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

One of the pollinator plants that Kate Frey recommends is the blanket flower, Gaillardia. Here a bumble bee, Bombus californicus, gives its approval. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
One of the pollinator plants that Kate Frey recommends is the blanket flower, Gaillardia. Here a bumble bee, Bombus californicus, gives its approval. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

One of the pollinator plants that Kate Frey recommends is the blanket flower, Gaillardia. Here a bumble bee, Bombus californicus, gives its approval. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Milkweed as one of Kate Frey's favorite pollinator plants. It's not only the host plant of the monarch butterfly, but other insects like it, too, including this leafcutter bee. This species is Asclepias speciosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Milkweed as one of Kate Frey's favorite pollinator plants. It's not only the host plant of the monarch butterfly, but other insects like it, too, including this leafcutter bee. This species is Asclepias speciosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Milkweed as one of Kate Frey's favorite pollinator plants. It's not only the host plant of the monarch butterfly, but other insects like it, too, including this leafcutter bee. This species is Asclepias speciosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A bumble bee and honey bee share teasel in the pollinator garden of  Kate and Ben Frey, Hopland. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A bumble bee and honey bee share teasel in the pollinator garden of Kate and Ben Frey, Hopland. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A bumble bee and honey bee share teasel in the pollinator garden of Kate and Ben Frey, Hopland. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The garden of Kate and Ben Frey, Hopland, is a showstopper.
The garden of Kate and Ben Frey, Hopland, is a showstopper.

The garden of Kate and Ben Frey, Hopland, is a showstopper.

Know Your Native Bees: Here's How!

Do you know your native bees? Can you distinguish a sweat bee from a leafcutting bee from a cuckoo bee from a mining bee? No sweat? Or, are you...ahem...sweating the answer?  You can learn more about native bees at a special presentation on...

Female sweat bee, Svastra obliqua expurgate, on purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Female sweat bee, Svastra obliqua expurgate, on purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Female sweat bee, Svastra obliqua expurgate, on purple coneflower, Echinacea purpurea. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A leafcutter bee, Megachile sp., heading for a broadleaf milkweed, Asclepias speciosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A leafcutter bee, Megachile sp., heading for a broadleaf milkweed, Asclepias speciosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A leafcutter bee, Megachile sp., heading for a broadleaf milkweed, Asclepias speciosa. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male cuckoo bee, Triepeolus concavusm, on a blanket flower, Gaillardia. Female cuckoo bees are cleptoparasites; they lay their eggs inside the nests of native bees, including Svastra. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
A male cuckoo bee, Triepeolus concavusm, on a blanket flower, Gaillardia. Female cuckoo bees are cleptoparasites; they lay their eggs inside the nests of native bees, including Svastra. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male cuckoo bee, Triepeolus concavusm, on a blanket flower, Gaillardia. Female cuckoo bees are cleptoparasites; they lay their eggs inside the nests of native bees, including Svastra. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Andrena (mining) bee on  meadowfoam, Limnanthes. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)
Andrena (mining) bee on meadowfoam, Limnanthes. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Andrena (mining) bee on meadowfoam, Limnanthes. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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