Planet Playdate - Give Thanks to Bees with a Bee House Craft

* Snacks and prizes were provided to our playgroup for this event from various brands, however, all thoughts and opinions are our own. Also, if you make a purchase using the links in this post, I may receive a commission.

It is the time of year for feasting. Who should we remember to thank? Our playgroup will tell you... Bees! Bees are responsible for 30 percent of the world’s crops and 90 percent of our wild plants because of their pollination efforts.

For November, our playgroup gave thanks to bees by building bee houses, donating their change to Friends of the Earth, and encouraging people to #BeeBold, spread the word, and take action against bee killing pesticides. We have a nice long post for you to follow along with us!




Each month, we host a Planet Playdate event where we can teach our playgroup about a healthy planet and the kids can learn and take action to save the earth and be healthy through play.

For our November Planet Playdate event, we had Happy Family join us with yummy snacks for our little ones. 

I was super excited to find out they have Happy Creamies which are similar to their yogurt treats but dairy-free! Of course they are still USDA organic, which we love.

I think the little ones like them, too!

Also Love Child Organics provided their yummy Banana, Peach, Strawberry pouches and Fruity Chomp bars, and OhSo Good Chocolate provided chocolate with probiotics for the kids and grown-ups to snack on.









Our kids crafted bee houses for Orchard Mason bees and were given a chance to win a Green Kid Craft box just like ALL of my readers will in just a few days.

See our review for the Discovery Box from Green Kid Crafts.

Also, right now, use coupon code 70SUB to take 70% off the first month of any subscription and coupon code 50SHOP will take 50% off any single Discovery Box, Creativity Kit, or Science Kit!



We also started giving out our Healthy Child Healthy World boxes to our playgroup this week. If feels good to be affiliated with an organization that I feel so closely aligned with and be able to share that with the families that we are friends with.



So, what is happening with bees. Why do they need our help???

In recent years there has been a decline in the bee population significant enough that many scientists and experts are recommending we ban bee killing neonics pesticides. The Colony Collapse Disorder that is threatening our bee population could be caused by a number of different things, including pesticides, global warming, parasites or mites on the bees.

But how can we kill weeds or pests without pesticides?

I get it. You have weeds and may live in a neighborhood that it's frowned upon or you'll get a fine if you have weeds. But please don't use the pesticides or herbicides that kill bees!



Here's some gardening tips we swear by that work great without killing bees:

Pull weeds (Hubby likes to pull after it rains or soak with water if you don't live in a drought area)

Use the right tools - we have a pokey tool and a few other hand tools that rip things out of the ground without a toxic spray.

Boil some water - Boiling water kills weeds. I really want a teapot for this for Christmas. I hope I don't get 4 teapots now...

You get more flies with VINEGAR! Remember that saying, about attracting flies with honey and not vinegar? That's because vinegar kills things like weeds, bugs, and bacteria, and it's natural.

You can also buy organic food when possible, plant things that attract bees, refuse to use pesticides, grow your own food, and share this information with others.

What can the little kids do to help bees? 

Make a Bee House Craft!

Not only can we stop using bee killing pesticides, but we can also plant plants and flowers that are friendly to pollinators and provide them a suitable habitat to live. This month, our playgroup built bee houses for Orchard mason bees (and I swear, you don't have to be a mason to build them... well maybe a carpenter, or just have a good saw blade for bamboo.)

We bought terra cotta pots, bamboo and moss to build houses for these solitary bees. They don't make hives and rarely sting. They seek small openings in structures or trees to create their little bachelor pads and our kids were there to help.



1. Cut bamboo in a variety of sizes to fit into a pot. This is where my husband used a saw blade that splintered the bamboo but it was no big deal. I used to cut them with a plant/flower clipper or strong pruning shears, but didn't want to ruin my blade, get bicep cramps or be outside prepping crafts all night for 12 kids so a circular saw zipped right through these.

2. Fill your pot with bamboo and moss. Start with the largest and work your way down to the smallest bamboo sticks. Soak your moss in water then stuff into the spaces between the bamboo. (That's what we used the salsa jars for.) We used a pen to poke it and toddlers and little kids love to do this. You will know when you are done when all the bamboo is locked into place and you feel like you can pick it up without them falling out.





3. Tie a ribbon around the pot to hand near plants that need to be pollinated. We love to re-use the old wired ribbon from 2 Christmases ago. Now we have to plant a few plants that need to be pollinated but that is another blog post...



Coming Soon...

In just a few days, we will be doing a giveaway where you can also win a Green Kid Craft box and some other great prizes.



If you feel compelled to help take action on behalf of bees, please feel free to give whatever you like to Friends of the Earth,. You can also see the variety of global causes that they are advocating for to better our world. They were so kind as to share the craft and play date ideas with us and we hopefully we can help send some love their way and have some of you pledge to take action as well.



Here are all the great links and bee love that Friends of the Earth, shared with me. Such great inspiration for saving bees!

http://libcloud.s3.amazonaws.com/93/e9/4/4703/Tips_for_Gardeners.pdf

Here are some other ideas to make bee houses:

http://www.hgtvgardens.com/crafts/how-to-make-a-bee-house

http://www.instructables.com/id/Bee-House/

http://www.marthastewart.com/272374/bamboo-bee-house

http://montanawildlifegardener.blogspot.com/2010/06/build-mason-bee-house-in-5-minutes.html

http://foxleas.com/bee_house.htm

Bee-friendly gardening tips:

http://libcloud.s3.amazonaws.com/93/e9/4/4703/Tips_for_Gardeners.pdf

Factsheet on different types of pollinators:

http://friendsoftheearth.s3.amazonaws.com/public/FOE_PollinatorFactSheet_7.pdf

http://friendsschoolplantsale.com/neonics
A partial list of products that contain neonics

What foods are pollinated by bees? I was SHOCKED at this long list Honeylove.org:

Apples
Mangos
Rambutan
Kiwi Fruit
Plums
Peaches
Nectarines
Guava
Rose Hips
Pomegranites
Pears
Black and Red Currants
Alfalfa
Okra
Strawberries
Onions
Cashews
Cactus
Prickly Pear
Apricots
Allspice
Avocados
Passion Fruit
Lima Beans
Kidney Beans
Adzuki Beans
Green Beans
Orchid Plants
Custard Apples
Cherries
Celery
Coffee
Walnut
Cotton
Lychee
Flax
Acerola – used in Vitamin C supplements
Macadamia Nuts
Sunflower Oil
Goa beans
Lemons
Buckwheat
Figs
Fennel
Limes
Quince
Carrots
Persimmons
Palm Oil
Loquat
Durian
Cucumber
Hazelnut
Cantaloupe
Tangelos
Coriander
Caraway
Chestnut
Watermelon
Star Apples
Coconut
Tangerines
Boysenberries
Starfruit
Brazil Nuts
Beets
Mustard Seed
Rapeseed
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Brussels Sprouts
Bok Choy (Chinese Cabbage)
Turnips
Congo Beans
Sword beans
Chili peppers, red peppers, bell peppers, green peppers
Papaya
Safflower
Sesame
Eggplant
Raspberries
Elderberries
Blackberries
Clover
Tamarind
Cocoa
Black Eyed Peas
Vanilla
Cranberries
Tomatoes
Grapes
Apples
Mangos
Kiwi Fruit
Plums
Peaches
Nectarines
Pears
Black and Red Currants
Strawberries
Onions
Cashews
Apricots
Allspice
Avocados
Kidney Beans
Adzuki Beans
Green Beans
Orchid Plants
Custard Apples
Cherries
Celery
Coffee
Walnut
Cotton
Lychee
Flax
Acerola – used in Vitamin C supplements
Macadamia Nuts
Sunflower Oil
Goa beans
Lemons
Buckwheat
Figs
Fennel
Limes
Quince
Carrots
Persimmons
Palm Oil
Loquat
Durian
Cucumber
Hazelnut
Cantaloupe
Tangelos
Coriander
Caraway
Chestnut
Watermelon
Star Apples
Coconut
Tangerines
Boysenberries
Starfruit
Brazil Nuts
Beets
Mustard Seed
Rapeseed
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Brussels Sprouts
Bok Choy (Chinese Cabbage)
Turnips
Congo Beans
Sword beans
Chili peppers, red peppers, bell peppers, green peppers
Papaya
Safflower
Sesame
Eggplant
Raspberries
Elderberries
Blackberries
Clover
Tamarind
Cocoa
Black Eyed Peas
Vanilla
Cranberries
Tomatoes
Grapes

I told you this would be a long post. I was going to tell you which pesticides to avoid but the list was so long that I decided to just tell you the truth and say avoid all of them unless they are natural and organic! Happy Thanksgiving and take care of our bees, everyone!