🦋Pollinator Initiative, Programming, and Events🐝

By Sharon Reily and Marie Stroop

Bees and other pollinators are crucial to our environment and our food supply. Let’s learn as much as possible about them and do what we can to protect them.

WCPL has joined libraries across the U.S. and Canada in the #PlantWildflowers initiative to draw attention to the importance of pollinators, particularly native bees. #PlantWildflowers is a collaboration between PBS Nature, the World Wildlife Fund, Airwick Fragrances, and HHMI Tangled Bank Studios, a film production company specializing in science and scientists. This spring and summer, we’ll be offering programs and activities related to pollinators for children and adults, screening an amazing documentary film on bees, and giving away wildflower seeds.

Williamson County Parks and Rec set aside two beds in their Community Garden for WCPL, one of which is for the Children’s department. The Kids Grow! Community Garden Project is the main program offered to children as part of the #PlantWildflowers initiative. It is a multi-session program open to 10 children ages 8-12. Two sessions were spent at the Community Garden, preparing and planting the bed. The third session covered nature journaling and the last session will introduce native pollinators, with a presentation by a local Master Gardener. An additional gardening program will give a larger group of children the opportunity to create a container garden using decorated gallon jugs and pollinator-friendly plants.

Upstairs in the Reference Department, we’ve set up one display featuring bees and other pollinators and another about native plants and wildflowers. Both displays highlight some of the Library’s resources on pollinators. Free seed packets and bee ID cards are available at each display. The seeds packets cover approximately one square foot, perfect for a container, window box or small patch of garden. When you’re in the Library, please take a packet, plant the seeds, and do your part to help feed our bees.

🐝 To help celebrate National Pollinator Month this June, local beekeeper and bee expert Jim Garrison will present a talk on Beekeeping in Tennessee 2022 on Tuesday, June 7 at 6:00. Aspiring backyard beekeepers shouldn’t miss it.

🐝 On Friday, June 24, the Library is excited to host a free screening for all ages of the documentary My Garden of 1000 Bees by acclaimed wildlife filmmaker Martin Dohrn. Using one-of-a-kind lenses he created, Dohrn was able to capture beautiful, close-up footage of the bees in his garden going about their daily lives.

Red mason bee on forget-me-not-Credit-Martin Dohrn

🐝 The Williamson County Master Gardeners Association is presenting Gardening for Pollinators on Monday, June 27. Learn how to make your yard a welcoming habitat for bees and other pollinators by incorporating native plants that are vital to their life cycles.

For more information about these programs and the initiative, call the library at the Reference Department, 615-595-1243 extension 1 and ask for Sharon or call the Children’s Department at 615-595-1244 extension 1 and ask for Marie.

All library programs are free and open to the public.  The library e-newsletter provides subscribers with news about programs like this and more.  Sign up to receive it via email. Please be aware that photos, screenshots, and videos may be taken at library events and activities for library use and publicity. Anyone not wanting to have their photo taken should notify library staff at the time of the event or activity.