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Pollinator Workshop - December 5, 2019
Creating Pollinator Friendly Greenspaces

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Solar Panels Go Well With
Tomatoes, Peppers and Pollinators

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Agrivoltaics, or the pairing of photovoltaic solar panels with agriculture, can help some crops thrive in hot, arid climates. (Photo: U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory [CC BY-NC-ND 2.0]/Flickr)

Read all About Agrivoltaics

Monarchs in the Rough

     The monarch butterfly is a North American icon, but the butterfly’s population has declined by more than 90 percent over the last two decades. To combat this decline and the decline of other key pollinators, Audubon International and Environmental Defense Fund have teamed up to create Monarchs in the Rough, a program that partners with golf courses to restore pollinator habitat in out-of-play areas.
READ THE STORY

WELCOME THE FIRST COURTHOUSE GARDEN CATERPILLAR

     Say Hello to the ​FIRST Courthouse Monarch Butterfly Caterpillar discovered on June 28, 2019.
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photo by Stephanie Boismenue
     Monarchs cannot survive without milkweed; their caterpillars only eat milkweed plants (Asclepias spp.) and monarch butterflies need milkweed to lay their eggs.
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photo by Stephanie Boismenue
Visit us at the Courthouse Garden and say hello to our newest resident!
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photo by Stephanie Boismenue

------ ALL ABOUT BIRDS ------

BIRDS
READ THE STORY
The Milwaukee Bucks Have The Most
​Bird-Friendly Stadium In The NBA

​
In June of 2018, the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks opened up
a new ​home stadium, and the team immediately made
sports history—with the first-ever certified
​bird-friendly professional sports arena.

What to Plant for
Monarchs

11 Plants for Monarchs
12 Plants for Monarchs
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Why Insects Populations are Plummeting...and Why it Matters

READ MORE
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Support Butterflies: Leave Faded Plants Until Spring

     Where are they? How do they show up in spring or summer? Many butterflies pass through a few generations during the warm months, but the “fall brood” doesn’t simply die off. Migration is rare in butterflies. Here are other ways butterflies overwinter, with examples of species commonly seen in the eastern U.S.
Whether they overwinter as a chrysalis, larvae, egg or adult, physiological changes occur that enable butterflies to survive the cold. The blood becomes enriched/thickened with sugars or alcohols, which lowers the freezing point; water content in the body decreases; and cellular water is bound to proteins to minimize crystallization.
     Here are strategies uses by over-wintering butterflies:
Make a chrysalis: The last generation of the year remains in the chrysalis in a dormant state for the winter. You can help ensure these beauties survive by leaving your perennials standing through the winter and by raking some leaves into your flower beds. This also create good insulation and mulch!
Crawl into a seed pod. Larvae that mature in fall crawl into seedpods to hibernate for the winter. In spring, they pupate and transform into butterflies.
Curl up in a leaf. Groups of butterfly larvae crawl under a leaf and curl it around themselves to make a shelter. To get the leaf to curl, they wrap a silk thread around it, and the thread shrinks as it dries, pulling the leaf over.
Chill out as an egg. Females lay their eggs the eggs remain dormant through the winter and hatch in spring.
     Now that you know that butterflies and other pollinators need plants and brush cover to complete their life cycles think about how your garden can help them overwinter. When you are cleaning up your garden in late fall, preparing for the winter, use caution! When you trim branches and tidy up, set the branches and leaves aside in case there are caterpillars or chrysalides hiding on them. Rake leaves into garden beds to provide cover for overwintering butterflies. Leave faded plants until the weather warms in spring.
     In the spring, after they have had time to emerge, you can compost or otherwise dispose of the material without harming butterflies.


Common Milkweed Insects

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Adult Red Milkweed Bug
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Adult Small Milkweed Bug
Common Milkweed Insects
Click on the button above for the story.

Where do Butterflies
​go in Winter

Autumn Leaves:
​Seven Ways to Use Them

Click HERE for story.
Click HERE for story.
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Creating An Oasis for Pollinators

Click on the photo for story.
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Valerie Burns' house in Minocqua.

Bring Back the Pollinators:
​Five Ways to Increase Nesting Habitat for Native Bees

PicturePhoto: Rollin Coville
Recent research suggests that pollinators do better in urban environments, yet these mowed, mulched, and managed landscapes frequently lack a sufficient amount of nesting habitat needed to support large numbers of bees. As wild bees move off ag lands and head for the cities and suburbs, they may struggle to find their “dream home” amongst ours. Click on the photo for more. . .

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New Discovery, More Bees Mark
Michigan's First, Full Bee Census

FULL STORY
      The first complete bee census in Michigan has confirmed a new species and revealed that the actual number of bee species in Michigan exceeded earlier estimates.  For the FULL STORY, click on the button below.
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Pollinators Need Everyone!

Oneida County Hosted the
Wisconsin Land and Water Conservation Association
Summer Tour  
​

     The Oneida County Land and Water Consevation Department hosted this year's WLWCA Summer Tour.  About 25 participants were treated to a tour of the Roadside Pollinator Habitat, the James Lake Farms Organic Cranberry Marsh, and the Three Lakes Winery, Garden and Orchard.
     In addition, attendees gathered for lunch at the Black Forest Pub and Grille just before the WLWCA Summer Business Meeting.  Highlights of the tour are in the slideshow below:

August Workshop - Pollinator Friendly Farming

Presentations that were part of the August 29th Pollinator Workshop can be viewed below.
Managing Pollinators on a Cranberry...
Pollinator Friendly Farming Workshop
USDA Pollinator Presentation
Monarch March
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The Bee Better ​Certified Program

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        Bee Better Certified(TM) works to give bees a healthy place to live.  It also helps incentivize farm practices that benefit pollinator populations counteracting production trends that jeopardize the pollinators upom whom we depend.
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An introduction to the
​Bee Better Certified Program

​Click on the photo!

For additional information click on any of the "buzzers" below:
PRODUCTION STANDARDS
Background to Production Standards
LABELING STANDARDS
Bee Better Certified Plan Template
Farm Management Assessment Guide
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COURTHOUSE
​1 S. Oneida Ave
P O Box 400, Rhinelander, WI 54501
(715) 369-7835
www.oclw.org 

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