UC Gardening Blogs

Here Come the Carpenter Bees!

It's spring and it's loud in the Spanish lavender patch. The girls--the honey bees--are buzzing...

A male mountain carpenter bee, Xyclocopa tabaniformis orpifex, nectaring on Spanish lavender. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male mountain carpenter bee, Xyclocopa tabaniformis orpifex, nectaring on Spanish lavender. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male mountain carpenter bee, Xyclocopa tabaniformis orpifex, peers at the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A male mountain carpenter bee, Xyclocopa tabaniformis orpifex, peers at the photographer. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Side view of the male mountain carpenter bee, Xyclocopa tabaniformis orpifex, nectaring on Spanish lavender. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Side view of the male mountain carpenter bee, Xyclocopa tabaniformis orpifex, nectaring on Spanish lavender. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Pollinator Plants in the Home Garden

By Brent McGhie, UC Master Gardener of Butte County, March 30, 2018. Pollinators, animals...

Why UC Davis Is the Place to 'Bee' on April 7

The University of California, Davis, is the place to "bee" on Saturday, April 7. There's a plant...

Honey bee nectaring on an aster. Many asters will be for sale at UC Davis on Saturday, April 7. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Honey bee nectaring on an aster. Many asters will be for sale at UC Davis on Saturday, April 7. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Honey bee and yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, sharing a coneflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Honey bee and yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, sharing a coneflower. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Kate Frey: Bee Gardens Make Us Happy

Whether you plant them, nurture them, or walk through them, bee gardens make us happy. That's what...

A yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, on Salvia "Indigo Spires" in Kate Frey's pollinator garden at the Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

A yellow-faced bumble bee, Bombus vosnesenskii, on Salvia "Indigo Spires" in Kate Frey's pollinator garden at the Sonoma Cornerstone. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

In the Loop--on the Mustard

Ever seen this mottled brownish/blackish/grayish moth around lately? The alfalfa looper moth,...

The alfalfa looper moth, Autographa californica, nectaring on mustard blossoms in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The alfalfa looper moth, Autographa californica, nectaring on mustard blossoms in Vacaville, Calif. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Spreading its wings, the alfalfa looper moth, Autographa californica, is oblivious to the photographer.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Spreading its wings, the alfalfa looper moth, Autographa californica, is oblivious to the photographer.(Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Side view of the alfalfa looper moth, Autographa californica. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

Side view of the alfalfa looper moth, Autographa californica. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

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