SFGate: Great Sunflower Project tracks bee populationSunday, May 30, 2010 Janny Hu, Chronicle Staff Writer
We're a bit hung up on bees at The Chronicle this year. Between the rise of urban beekeeping and the decline of bee populations worldwide, Home & Garden Editor Deb Wandell and I have hopes of someday starting a hive on our rooftop.
Until then, we're satisfying our bee fancy by planting one of their favorite sources of nectar and pollen; sunflowers. And in the name of science, no less.
It's all part of the Great Sunflower Project, a volunteer-based study founded two years ago by San Francisco State University Professor Gretchen LeBuhn.
LeBuhn's goal is to track bee populations across the United States and Canada by creating a network of backyard bee observers, and it couldn't be easier to participate.
Home gardeners simply sign up online, plant 'Lemon Queen' variety sunflower seeds in their yards, decks or rooftops, then report bee activity once the flowers bloom.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/05/30/HOCF1DJP3P.DTL
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