Saturday, July 15, 2023

GardenDC Podcast Episode 156: Gardening for Wild Bees

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we chat with Sam Droege, a wildlife biologist at the USGS, all about gardening for native and specialist bees. The plant profile is on Bronze Fennel and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out with a tribute to the late, great garden writer Pam Harper* as our Last Word.


If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 47: Pollinator Victory Gardens

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2021/02/gardendc-podcast-episode-47-pollinator.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 141: Nature's Best Hope with Doug Tallamy 

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2023/03/gardendc-podcast-episode-141-natures.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 31: Beekeeping

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2020/10/gardendc-podcast-episode-31-beekeeping.html

This episode is archived at: 
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BTW, YOU can become a listener supporter for as little as $0.99 per month! 
See how at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/support.

SHOW NOTES: 01:07 Meet Sam Droege, a wildlife biologist at the United States Geological Survey (USGS). 04:40 Droege’s childhood environment in Hyattsville, Maryland 07:03 What does Droege grow and prioritize in his own personal and professional gardens? 09:44 How to switch invasive species to native plants. 12:45 What invasive plants get through despite using this method? 14:46 “In lots of our cases we just bury everything and then deal with what comes up,” with the perennials coming back up through the mulch in following years. 16:24 Most facts people have about bees are about honey bees, not native bees. Honey bees are not native to America, meaning they are much less involved in pollinating native plants. Wild bees, however, are incredibly important to the native ecosystem. 18:20 Clearing up native bee misconceptions. 19:35 The honey bee collapse (and how it wasn’t what people thought). 21:34 “About 40% of the native pollen-carrying bees are highly specialized.” 22:58 You can make a big difference in the bee population by planting diverse and native plants. 25:49 A quick guide on how to help from your own home: “If you want to save wild bees, you plant native plants of a variety of kinds.” 28:18 Which plants should you grow? Pick native plants that bloom throughout the year and have an unusually colored blossom (blue, white, yellow). 29:53 Pollen Specialist Bees of the Eastern United States: https://jarrodfowler.com/specialist_b... 30:58 Diversity matters. Different colors and shapes attract different bees, helping each different species. 32:44 How cutting your yard affects the ecosystem: “You cut anything during the year - during the growing season - you’ve eliminated almost all the fall flowers.” 34:44 Don’t think your space is too small. It can take as little as five flowers to provide enough pollen for a bee to create a nest and have a bee baby. 35:51 For small space gardeners, there are tons of options. You may only be able to choose a couple of plants, but many native plants are amenable to container gardening if they’re treated well. 40:00 Composites and bees. 42:08 Significant conservation is typically dependent on shrubs and perennials due to their specialized nature. 43:51 Native flower-abundant shrubs: Pinxter Azalea, New Jersey Tea, and Dogwood varieties. 44:10 Azaleas and bees. 45:26 You don’t need to know the details to help -- planting native plants makes a big difference. 47:28 “Forest Bathing” is great for the mental health of everyon. Bringing that into your own neighborhood can help your own mental state and the neighbors around you. 51:03 Droege’s favorite wild bees. 53:38 Find Droege on social media through Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr: @usgsbiml 54:39 Access beautiful photos at USGS’s Flickr account: @usgsbiml 55:53 Contact Droege through email: sdroege@usgs.gov 57:30 Bronze Fennel: This week’s Plant Profile! 59:25 Garden Updates: The Cup Flower is starting to bloom, the Vitex is just forming buds. At the community garden the Zucchini, Tomatoes, Peppers, and cut-flower garden are all doing well. 59:56 Upcoming Events: The Washington Gardener Photo Show Opening Reception; Montgomery County Agricultural Fair; Ladew Topiary Gardens “Come Inside” Open House; Common Good City Farm Back-to-School Tomato Jam ; Urban Tree Summit with Casey Trees (https://caseytrees.org/urban-tree-sum.... 1:02:48 “The Urban Garden” by Kathy Jentz and Teri Speight. 1:03:48 “Groundcover Revolution” by Kathy Jentz. 1:05:10 The Last Word: A tribute to the late garden writer Pamela J. Harper.

We welcome your questions and comments! You can leave a voice mail message for us at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/message Note that we may use these messages on a future episode.

And be sure to leave us a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform plus share us on social media with #GardenDC, so other gardeners can find us too!

Episode Credits:
Host and Producer: Kathy Jentz
Interview Editor and Show Notes: Marissa Yelenik

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