Vibe Credit Union’s Post

As we approach May, let's take a moment to think about our little wild friends. Did you know that leaving your garden untouched can help our pollinators thrive? That's why initiatives like #NoMowMay are so important. So, remember to keep those lawnmowers locked away in the shed and check out https://lnkd.in/esEZ-9Tp to learn more about how you can help support our pollinators. Let's give them the space they need to flourish!

🦋 Announcing the Winners of the Plant it Forward: Milkweed Challenge!🦋 🏆 First Place: Asclepias tuberosa (Butterfly Weed) 🥈 Second Place: Asclepias incarnata (Swamp Milkweed) 🥉 Third Place: Asclepias syriaca (Common Milkweed) Thank you to everyone who participated in the Plant it Forward: Milkweed Challenge! Your enthusiasm and support for our pollinator friends and their habitats have been truly inspiring. Though the voting phase has drawn to a close, the impact of your contributions continues to blossom. Each dollar raised during this campaign is significant in bolstering the MJV’s habitat program, ensuring that essential spaces for bees, butterflies, and other wildlife thrive. Let's persist in sowing the seeds of change together. As you plan your native gardens for the upcoming season and seek out milkweed and native wildflowers, explore the MJV’s Milkweed and Wildflower Vendor Map at https://lnkd.in/eihNaCZ4.  Together, we can continue planting seeds of change. 🐛🦋 #MilkweedChallenge #PollinatorHabitat #MonarchButterflies #MorethanMonarchs #PollinatorConservation #Milkweed #PlantNative #PlantDiverse #PlantMilkweed

Urban Gardening ~ creatively using our environments to grow fresh produce, encourage an active lifestyle, meet others, and reduce the pull on our international food market. While we're entering into the harvest season, I'd encourage you to check out The Gardens Network by Rooted. This is an organization who's mission is to "work toward an equitable food system by ensuring access to garden space and healthy food, and by educating beginning farmers and gardeners of all ages." Maybe this upcoming year is the time for you to learn the basics of gardening, jump back into a long-neglected pastime, or share your own horticulture expertise with someone just starting out! https://lnkd.in/gmaWGznp

Colorado is taking the save the bees initiative and combatting it their own way. Saving the bees has been a part of the news for the past five or so years, but many of the projects haven't had much of an impact. Colorado plans on giving out 100,000 packets of wildflower seeds to children across the state, in hopes that the new flowers across the state will spark a resurgence in their population. Massachusetts and other states are also participating in the Save the Bees program, with No Mow May. This is a program designed to reduce or stop people mowing their lawns in the month of May. With lawns that are more grown out and not cut as frequently there is a higher percentage of bee density and species. Bee City USA has done studies in several parts of the country and found this to be consistent throughout. In Massachusetts they found that with less frequent mowing patterns that there were an additional 93 species of bees found. With mowing less there are additional benefits too. Mowing less frequently also will lead to reduced costs for operation and gas, the study found that parks that conduct 5 fewer mows per year would reduce costs by 36%. Less usage of gas and mowers would also reduce the carbon footprint that the United States emits and support climate change practices.     Honeybees play an essential part in the pollination of plants and play a significant role in the agricultural world. They impact a massive part of the economy, contributing around 15 billion dollars annually to the crop value. So, trying to increase the population of bees would be beneficial for all. #ProjectPositivity #GreatOutdoors #GOCO #Volunteer #SavetheBees #MMALifeSciencesPractice If you would like to learn more; Group Wants Colorado Kids to Save the Bees This Summer–Giving Out 100,000 Free Packets of Wildflower Seeds (goodnewsnetwork.org), https://lnkd.in/e3cxgKZW

The benefits of community gardens extend beyond food production. By expanding the pool of local gardeners and providing more garden space, families and individuals can cultivate affordable, nutritious crops, revitalise neglected spaces, improve local food security, foster connections with neighbours, and collaborate towards enhancing their communities.⁠ ⁠ Be careful clearing the site of weeds and rubbish. Hidden dangers, such as potentially harmful plants, broken glass, and trip hazards, could exist. Always wear gloves, especially on waste ground. ⁠ ⁠ We recommend using Chikara®, a residual herbicide for controlling annual and perennial weeds in shrub beds and on natural and porous surfaces (that are not intended to bear vegetation).⁠ ⁠ https://lnkd.in/g8Pwep2u #CommunityGardenWeek #Gardens #Volunteers

Community forest grows by 240,000 trees in a year https://botany.fyi/5ks1s3 The Humber Forest is one of 15 similar schemes established near major towns and cities across the UK. #Botany

🌿 Check out this article about the challenges facing the locals in Devon's "weed city." The rapid growth of grass has left the community frustrated. #Devon #WeedCity #LocalChallenges https://ift.tt/1qwDhJv

🌱Urban farming involves growing crops, raising animals, or producing food in various urban settings, such as rooftops, backyards, and community gardens. 💧Urban farms enhance quality of life by reducing access barriers to healthy food such as transportation, finances and availability. 💡Interested in reducing food insecurity for your community? Book a consultation to learn the various funding opportunities available to start a community garden at your facility.

#DidYouKnow Pollinator Week is June 17-23! Just like how pollinators help plants reproduce, pollinators do the same for our trees. Without pollinators, there would be a lot fewer fruiting and flowering trees. One easy way to support Charlotte’s tree canopy is to create a pollinator garden. This is particularly helpful if you can't plant trees because you live in an apartment, or your community already has an abundance of trees, or you have a small space that can’t fit a tree. You can find more information on pollinator gardens at: https://lnkd.in/gtHUQJZX Another simple way to support Charlotte's tree canopy? Sign our pledge to protect our city's iconic trees at CharlotteWithoutTrees.org! #Pollinators #PollinatorWeek #CanopyConservation #TreeConopyCLT #TreesCLT #CharlotteWithoutTrees

Sun volunteers to provide energy and light. Bees volunteer to pollinate flowers. Butterflies volunteer in seed dispersal. Birds volunteer to keep insect populations in check Earthworms volunteer to enrich and aerate the soil Ants volunteer to turn over soil. This Pongal, let’s thank nature and our farmers for putting food on our plates. Let’s volunteer like nature to save nature. #pongal #farmer #nature #volunteer #volunteering