Sunflowers and Bees

We have a sunflower!!! And there was no shortage of bees. As soon as we walked over to take a look, there were 2 bees flying around already. They walked around and flew around for a 20mins while we examined our flower and the rest of the garden Both boys were happy to see an actual flower on there now and to see the bees. Can't wait to see the rest of the plants blooming with flowers :) Here are some pictures!

Sunflowers for Bees Stage 2

There they are! Our sunflowers are starting to grow. As of right now we have 3 that are actually showing above ground, not sure if any others will be joining them but we will see. JD showed a little interest when I showed him that his flowers were starting to grow, but he was to busy playing and swimming to care to much. JAE helped water them the other day and likes that job :)

They were a little more interested in this little guy yesterday then their nonflowery sunflowers. Can't blame them :)

Sunflowers for Bees Stage 1

Spent the day planting our sunflower seeds for our "Bee Experiment" and "Learn How Things Grow" studies. They were more interested in making and playing in the mud, but JD did help put the seeds and plants into the ground once I had finished digging it all up.

The sunflowers are on the left, carrots in the middle, 2 tomato and a strawberry plant on the right. Can't wait until they start popping up!

Last Week we also finished up our study on the human body. JD learned many interesting facts about himself like: little white circles called blood cells heal all his boo-boos, his heart is like a fountain, bones make you strong and help your body not look like pudding, muscles help you move, and his 5 senses.

The Bees Are Disappearing

Yes, that's right.  The bees are disappearing!  I first heard this as a "joke" in a TV show and it seems to be catching my eye/hear more often.  If you would like proof of this statement you can read THIS

So why am I talking this?  Well for starters, like I said, I keep hearing about bees.  Probably about every other week I hear something about how we are in a shortage of bees to pollinate the different plants our food comes from.  Less beekeepers in the world.  The few beekeepers left keep seeing their hives die more and more each season.  Dying from both sickness and the poison people spray all over their plants.

Second, we (JD and I) studied about insects last week in preschool and the insect that my son had the most interest in was the bee.  We even side tracked a bit to watch a couple short videos about them and how they make honey.  And just to comment on this...in the short web search I preformed at the last minute, there are not many videos geared towards young kids.  Older kids yes, but not for the little ones.  He watched one and then lost interest in the second and I don't blame him.

Third, our sunflower experiment is coming up in a month or so!  We will be documenting how many BEES come to visit our sunflowers :)  See I just can't escape the bees HAHA.  Hoping our seeds will arrive in the next few weeks so we can get those growing!  The boys should enjoy helping to plant them and watching them grow.  Bonus science experiment - how plants grow and what they need!

Anywho...The Bees Are Disappearing so be nice to the few you see this spring and summer!

Hunt for Bees!

Today I came across this pretty simple science project called The Great Sunflower Project 2010.

The Goal: Document how many bees come to visit your sunflower.
The Cost: $3.00 for seeds through their website OR buy them at a local store. Cost for dirt and pots OR use your own garden. :)

There are only 4 easy steps to participate!
1.Sign up on their website and plant your sunflower
2.Describe your garden
3.Time how long it takes 5 bees to visit your sunflower plant
4.Enter your data online or send them your form.

Sounds easy right? I thought so! We will be participating this year and probably plant our seeds in April or May once this cold weather is FINALLY gone haha. Why don't you join us! ;)