It may not look much like spring yet but now is the time to start planning this summer’s garden.
With various bee and other insect populations plummeting, why not consider making your garden or small space more attractive to beneficial insects?
The guest speaker at the March 12 Burke Mountain Naturalists’ meeting is an expert in encouraging beneficial garden insects, especially pollinators.
Veronica Wahl, co-ordinator of the Institute of Urban Ecology at Douglas College, facilitates a number of programs, including the UNIBUG citizen science project at Douglas.
UNIBUG gets community volunteers involved in attracting predatory and parasitic insects into urban gardens as well as studying pollinators and their habitat through identifying, counting bees and monitoring bee houses.
In her presentation next Tuesday, Wahl will explain how to encourage local and native bees in the garden, including mason bees (for springtime blooms) and leafcutter bees (for summer blooms).
The meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the King of Life Lutheran Church, 1198 Falcon Dr., Coquitlam. Everyone is welcome to attend and there is no charge.
For more information, call 604-937-5379 or visit www.burkemountainnaturalists.ca.
