Uconnladybug's Blog

The UConn Home & Garden Education Center

Bees

  • Solitary Wasps Found in the Landscape and Garden

    “Let us turn elsewhere, to the wasps and bees, who unquestionably come first in the laying up of a heritage for their offspring.”  Jean-Henri Fabre Solitary wasps are primarily hunting wasps which are either digger wasps or thread-waisted wasps. Most… Continue reading

    Solitary Wasps Found in the Landscape and Garden

  • March and April Flowers for Pollinators

    Daffodils,That come before the swallow dares, and takeThe winds of March with beauty.”— William Shakespeare In late March there are signs that spring is here. Snow is usually gone, and although no leaves have appeared on our deciduous trees and… Continue reading

  • June Blooms for Pollinators

     “In early June the world of leaf and blade and flowers explodes, and every sunset is different.” ―John Steinbeck June sees a significant increase in bee activity here in Connecticut. During the past two weeks on my own property the… Continue reading

  • Outdoors in Late April and Early May 2023

    “Some old-fashioned things like fresh air and sunshine are hard to beat.” Laura Ingalls Wilder This spring has been one for the books, and I do not mean comic books. We had a week of 70 and 80 degree days… Continue reading

  • Preparing CT Bee Colonies for Spring Weather Events

    Spring thunderstorms are a part of life in New England. While we know to prepare our homes, pets, and livestock for inclement weather when it hits, we may not think to secure our beehives for bad weather as well. It… Continue reading

  • Late–season Bloomers for Pollinators and Butterflies

    “Summer’s lease hath all too short a date.” – William Shakespeare The grand finale of the blooming season is here and while many plants are winding down their bloom period, other plants are still in great form or are yet… Continue reading

  • Outdoors in August 2020

    August is ripening grain in the fields blowing hot and sunny, the scent of tree-ripened peaches, of hot buttered sweet corn on the cob. Vivid dahlias fling huge tousled blossoms through gardens and joe-pye-weed dusts the meadow purple. -Jean Hersey… Continue reading

  • Outdoors in Early Spring

    Spring has returned. The Earth is like a child that knows poems. – Rainer Maria Rilke This spring has arrived at a plodding, glacial pace. Several snows in April and chilly, gray days which far outnumber the anticipated sunny, warmer… Continue reading

  • Plants for Our Native Bees

    To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee,  One clover, and a bee, And revery.  The revery alone will do, If bees are few      – Emily Dickinson When I first moved in to my present… Continue reading

  • Giving Mother Nature a ‘ Helping Hand ‘

    If you can’t be in awe of Mother Nature, there’s something wrong with you. Alex Trebek Sometimes, in the course of our lifetime, we may find ourselves in the right place at the right time to make a difference in… Continue reading