(Image Above: NASA's spectacular Delta Tree Poster by Artist Jenny Mottar)
April 22, 2020 is the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. This year’s official theme is climate change. Earth Day is a digital celebration this year, due to the impact of COVID-19.
It is always Earth Day at Bee Mission, where we support all bees and the earth every day. Without bees our planet would look very different, and so would we, since one of every three bites of food we eat is pollinated by bees.
Our passion is educating people about bees. Imagine if each of us plants a nectar and pollen producing flowering bush or tree that is native to the climate in our part of the world. Bees could forage on quality nectar and pollen from wildflowers and native plants in wild and urban settings everywhere.
An empowered Bee Missionary loves and respects bees and wants to help them. Our weekday bee blog educates and inspires. It’s all about bees. Knowledge is power, so in order to help them we need to stay on top of what is going on.
This short 1:41-minute video by WWF UK last year talks about climate change and bees:
Here are some superb ways to spend Earth Day from the safety of your home that benefit bees, planet Earth and humans:
Plant an Herbal Window Box or Native Flowering Plant in a Flowerpot
Whether you have a spacious and gracious garden, a terrace flowerpot or a kitchen window planter box, today’s the day to plant some flowering herbs to feed yourself and the bees… or nectar-producing flowers that you love. Go for low maintenance and simplicity, and have your plants or seeds delivered or do curbside pick-up at a local garden center.
Take a Solitary Walk and Admire Flowering Plants Along the Way
Connect with nature on a leisurely stroll and see which plants you are drawn to. Take photos with your phone of blossoms that catch your eye and show these to an expert at the garden center or identify them online so you can plant some in your garden. If you're lucky, you may snap a photo of a foraging bee or two. Let your eyes linger on the beauty of our planet.
Leftovers and a Classic Earth Documentary for Evening Entertainment
Not quite what we think of as dinner and the movies, but it can be so much better! BEE creative and make a meal with the leftovers in your fridge. Then settle in to admire Earth in all her glory by watching the docuseries Our Planet which is hosted by David Attenborough and is available on Netflix. Or watch a National Geographic endangered species documentary.
Stargazing
We are at the peak of the annual Lyrid meteor shower (April 16 to 25, 2020), so after dark gaze at the south-eastern sky, scanning for shooting stars with the naked eye. Do you see any famous constellations like Orion or the Big Dipper in the Northern Hemisphere? A small southern constellation in the deep southern sky called Musca was called Apis, Bee constellation, for 200 years.
Some Fun Family Resources:
NASA made a spectacular tribute this year with their beautiful Delta Tree Poster that blends art and science. Artist Jenny Mottar explains her inspiration and the steps she took in this 3:44-minute video that describes her creation process for the 2020 NASA Earth Day Poster. Visit NASA's Earth Day page.
Jenny talks about how, in 2018, Swiss scientists discovered the relationship between tree roots and fungi underground when they confirmed that voltage-based signals similar to our nervous system can be sent to neighboring trees to warn each other of impending problems.
Happy Child and Inner Child Earth Day Projects
Tinkerlab is a free spirit creative resource site for those who homeschool or are just downright craftsy. It speaks to the child within as well, so there are projects here to delight all ages. They have 50 activities for kids this Earth Day and we especially love their Building the Fairy Garden post. Where there are fairies there are bees to be found, too!
The Top Bee Happy Craft for Earth Day
Help feed the bees this Earth Day with the craft project offered by The Whatever Mom at hvparent. This super fun craft idea helps feed bees and is called Making Seed Bombs. You need to use some recycling paper, so it’s perfect for Earth Day. Once you make the seed bombs, just scatter them around your garden, on the sides of a hiking trail or anywhere you’d like to see some wildflowers growing soon. This project is geared to children but appeals to the inner child in us all.
About Earth Day
On April 22, 1970, the first Earth Day was a roaring success, and it has endured ever since. 20 million Americans protested against smog, polluted rivers and oil spills around the country. Climate change, deforestation and species extinction are ongoing issues along with new threats like plastic pollution in the oceans.
The desire to replace environmental ignorance with environmental empowerment was born. The Clean Air Clean Water Act and Endangered Species Act were created in response to it, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was born of this event. Much of the world soon followed.
Let's bee inspired by our beautiful planet and live life for the greater good of us all.
Here's to the bees!