With the growing season in full swing, Cranbrook Food Action Committee is hosting its first Pollinator Party on Tuesday, June 11 from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Cranbrook Public Produce Garden.

The Public Produce Garden is located in Eric McKinnon Park on 18 Ave N. This event will provide light refreshments and is free to attend.

With current bee populations in the Kootenays decreased after a long winter, pollinators need our help.The public is invited to come learn what they can do to improve the health of the population. Pollinators are essential to supporting and maintaining our local food system. “Almost 90% of flowering plants need pollinators to reproduce,” says Julie Wray and Elizabeth Elle of SFU. Without a healthy pollinator population, farmers and gardeners experience poor crop yields. We need to be mindful of the little things that may be harming the bees.

This event will feature a conversation with Lance Cuthill from the East Kootenay Beekeepers. Lance has been a beekeeper in the region for many years and knows first-hand the effects a poor bee population has on our food system. Lance will be sharing his experience and providing tips and insight on how we can play a positive role in improving our honey bee population.

While honey bees are extremely important to plant pollination there are also more than 450 species of bee in BC. The Pollinator Party will also celebrate the solitary and docile, native bees such as the leaf cutter and the mason bee. To help these populations you don’t have to go beyond your back yard.

Making your garden more bee-friendly is as easy as adding more native wildflowers and native bee nesting sites, including bee houses. We hope you can join us and learn what you can do to help the bees!

To connect with the Cranbrook Public Produce Garden visit Cranbrook Food Action Committee on Facebook or email [email protected].

Submitted

---

Article Share

---