Solitary Mason Bees

I have begun an hobby of keeping solitary mason bees!

Here is a video all about them:
http://www.growingagreenerworld.com/solitary-bees-pollinators/

The bee house is being shipped. It's a 20-tube house with an observation window (basically the window is plexiglass with a piece of wood that slides over it, so it remains dark for the bees until you want to view). I did get it through the company on the video, Crown Bees, which sells through Amazon.

Here is the bee house I ordered:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004G7Q1F6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

There were nicer bee houses to choose from but I really want the observation window, especially since this is my first time keeping bees.

Step 1 was to add native (flowering) plants to the landscape. I have alot out front but not too many in back where the house will be, so I planted a ring of pentas around the bird bath.



I have more flowers to plant (coneflowers, blanket flowers, black eyed susan), but I don't know where to put them yet.



Here are some shots of the front of the house where I know the bees will have a field day.







Pentas:






I might move this plumbago to the back...

Watermelon

I started a watermelon garden! Check it out!



About 5 days later:



Started tomatoes in pots. Beds are a no no since the episode of fusarium wilt.



Transplanted an unproductive pepper from spring from the bed to a pot, after a friend told me peppers are solitary. Now it's doing great!

Mushroom farm

I bought this at Fresh Market. This thing is cool!

Started seeing progress within the week




2 days later!




And all this needs is only 1 tsp water twice a day. It doesn't even need sun.

Tomato diseases

We have had too much rain and my tomatoes acquired a fungus which I believe to be Fusarium Wilt. I tore up most plants, but still got a decent harvest. There are a few sad plants left but I am waiting for the tomatoes to get red before I pull them.





The garden also got overgrown with weeds, so I have been pulling every day, then I laid down some contractor bags and tacked them down with landscaping staples.

I started new tomato plants from seeds as August is the new planting season.

And the morning glories reseeded their pot. Now I look outside and see nothing but love!

Today's harvest!

Garden is doing ok. Very weedy though. I need to lay down some weed paper or something. For now, I'm pulling. Tomato plants are looking twiggy but are still making a large number of tomatoes so I am letting them be. Peas and green beans : I got a small harvest off them but then they got twiggy and died. They have been replaced with cucumber seeds which are growing well. The sweetie tomatoes are really producing and are less prone to fruit cracking than the romas. I will grow them again next year. Upside down tomato planter, which is in its second year with the same [cherry tomato] plant is kind of looking sad now. I will swap it out. The topsy turvy morning glory planter has "reseeded itself" and is now growing new morning glories. I cleared out the old to make room for the new.

A friend I was visiting sent me home with these:



Aren't these cool? These are lily bulbs, different from the rain lilies I have. These are more tropical looking lilies. The bulbs look bizarre, like turtle eggs. I will be putting them on top of a pot of dirt so they take root.

Morning glories

Morning glories in the Topsy Turvy









I haven't done much with the front garden but the pentas are spreading to cover it and they are in bloom. I pruned a little and used the clippings for a small mason jar bouquet for the bathroom.

posted from Bloggeroid

Growth spurts

Growth spurts caused by rain!

posted from Bloggeroid