The UC Davis Bee Haven is the place to "bee."
If you love bees and other pollinators, love plants, love nature, and love to volunteer, you'll want to head over to The Haven--a pollinator paradise--on Saturday, Aug. 30. It's the last Volunteer Day of the summer, and will take place from 8 to 11:30 a.m.
The Haven is located at 1 Bee Biology Road, next to the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research facility, UC Davis campus. Both are under the umbrella of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, part of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CA&ES).
"Help us care for a vibrant pollinator garden that inspires, educates, and supports the bees, butterflies, and birds we all depend on," invites Samantha Murray, education and garden coordinator of The Haven.
Director of the UC Davis Bee Haven is bee scientist and professor Elina Niño, part of UC Cooperative Extension and on the faculty of theUC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology (ENT). She is the founder and director of the UC Davis-based California Master Beekeeper Program.
On a recent group tour of the Haven, Niño pointed out that "We have more 200 native plants in the garden. It’s the home of honey bees, native bees, butterflies, native bees--and a few ground squirrels.” UC Davis Distinguished Professor Emeritus Robbin Thorp (1933-2019) detected and identified more than 80 native bees in the garden. California alone is home to 1600 species of native bees.
The Bee Haven, installed in the fall of 2009 under the direction of ENT chair Lynn Kimsey, now professor emerita, showcases numerous art projects headed by the UC Davis Art/Science Fusion Program, founded and directed by entomologist/artist Diane Ullman, professor and former ENT department chair (and now emerita), and artist Donna Billick. Billick's six-foot-long sculpture of a worker bee, "Miss Bee Haven," anchors the garden, and a mural of native bees graces the garden shed. The art in The Haven is the work of students in Ullman's Entomology 1 class and community residents. Eagle Scout Derek Tully planned, organized and built a state-of-the-art fence around the garden. (See history of the garden).
The Bee Haven is open from dawn to dusk. Admission is free. Parking? On weekends, parking is free. On weekdays, the first hour of parking is free, according to the UC Davis Transportation Services.
Join Volunteer Day:
To join Samantha Murray and The Haven team on Volunteer Day, email beehaven@ucdavis.edu. "Whether you love gardening, want to support the environment, or just enjoy spending time outdoors, your help makes a difference!" she said. "Please bring a water bottle, a hat, and anything else you need to stay comfortable outdoors."
Subscribe to The Haven Newsletter:
Email beehaven@ucdavis.edu.
Group Tours:
Contact the team at beehaven@ucdavis.edu for more information, or access its website at https://beehaven.ucdavis.edu/tours
Donate:
To donate to the UC Davis Bee Haven, access https://beehaven.ucdavis.edu/donate. Further informatoin is available from Cari DuBois-Wright, director of development, CA&ES, at caduboiswright@ucdavis.edu or 530-752-6971.