Page 15 - Overview Summer 2019

What’s the Buzz?
For a honey bee the day is truly busy. Buzzing from place to place, bees look for nectar or water to take back to help support their colony. The rest of their short lives are spent cleaning the hive, taking care of younger siblings and disposing of dead older ones, caring for the queen, and building, guarding, and cooling the hive. Stinging you is the last thing they want to do.
Bees play a crucial role in our environment as they are pollinators for flowering plants, many of those in agriculture. Another way they benefit us is the delicious honey bees produce.
As hard as they work and as strong as they are, bees across the country are disappearing due to a poorly understood condition known as Colony Collapse Disorder. You can help support bees and protect our food supply by taking a few simple steps:
Plant a wide variety of plants - Choose your plants so that something is blooming from early spring until late fall. Look for a
variety of colors and shapes.
Plant native species - Plants that belong in this area are four times more likely to attract bees
than exotic species.
Avoid pesticides - Don’t buy plants that have been pretreated with pesticides.
Any pesticides
you do use
should be
applied
sparingly
and for
a specific
reason.
“Share the Road” is a two-way street
Summer means an increasing number of bicyclists of all kinds and ages. Sharing the road means that motorists and bicyclists need to be acquainted with a few “Rules of the ‘Shared’ Road” to minimize conflicts and enhance enjoyment for all.
Motorists:
Be alert - cyclists may abruptly swerve to avoid obstacles that a motorist wouldn’t notice. These may include sand or debris near the curb, broken pavement and unfriendly grates.
Be patient - a few seconds gained are not worth an accident.
Make room - Kansas law requires you allow 3 feet of space when passing a bicycle.
Bicyclists:
Be Legal - obey all traffic laws.
Be predictable - ride with traffic in a straight line, and use
hand signals when turning, changing lanes and stopping.
Be seen - wear bright-colored clothing and be sure you are seen. If you ride at dawn or dusk, invest
in front and rear lights.
Be heard - say “on your left” when passing other cyclists and pedestrians.
Be protected - wear a helmet - always. If you insist on riding without one, please carry an organ donor card.
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