Volunteering with Children's Programming/School Tours at JCRA
Anyone who is interested in volunteering with the Children's Programming and School Tours please contact Kathryn Wall first at [email protected]. She can collect all your information and get them in the database to accumulate hours toward membership and all the benefits that come with it! Mention your interest in the Children's Programming and School Tours and Kathryn will get your info to Joy Burns who runs the program. She will also answer any questions that you may have.
SAVE THE DATE
Roadside cleanup is scheduled for Friday the 19th of April. This is our twice a year service project to clean up trash along Angier Ave. Specific time and meeting location will be provided.
GROUND NESTING BEES SHOULD BE APPRECIATED AND NOT FEARED
Every year, from mid-March through mid-April, I get calls from folks worried about all the bees hovering over their lawns. They want to know how they can kill them because they are afraid they will sting their loved ones. This is the time of the year when our native ground nesting bees become active and start provisioning their nests. We have close to 400 species of ground nesting bees in North Carolina and they are beneficial pollinators that pose no threat to humans!
You can read all about them and see photos of some of the different types of ground nesting bees and their nests on the Growing Small Farms website. Hopefully after learning more about them you will feel inspired to protect and celebrate them and not fear them.
Visit the Growing Small Farms website to learn why Ground-nesting Bees Should Be Appreciated, Not Feared!
--
Debbie Roos
Agricultural Extension Agent
Chatham County Center
North Carolina Cooperative Extension
919.542.8244
GET READY FOR BROOD XIX
In April when the soil temperature reaches 64 degrees Brood XIX cicadas, otherwise known as the 13-year locusts or cicadas will emerge in our area of NC. Yeah, for the first time since 1803, they will emerge with Brood XIII, or the 17-year cicadas. However, the two areas where they will emerge really do not overlap. The cicadas are harmless to people and animals and are only a concern to young trees when the females make their slits in tender branches to lay eggs. Otherwise, they are free lawn aeration and a natural fertilizer when they die. Birds will pig out on them. Between emergence from the soil until they die, you can go to sleep with their melodious cacophony ringing in your ears. You should not have a hard time seeing them as the experts predict about one million cicadas per acre this year. We will see how accurate their prediction is.
So what do you do with all of these cicadas. EAT THEM! They are an excellent source of protein and free. If you eat shrimp at $15/pound cicadas are a bargain and taste similar. They are both arthropods. Basically, collect them in a bag and put them in the freezer for 2 to 3 hours to put them to "sleep". Then pull off the wings and legs and prepare them for cooking. There are actually many recipes on the web. At the simplest, mix an egg and flour with seasoning of your choice, roll them in the batter and fry them in oil for about 5 minutes. They are just like popcorn shrimp. I know, Americans aren't big insect eaters yet we enjoy shrimp, lobster, and live oysters (phlegm) on the half shell.
Anyone who is interested in volunteering with the Children's Programming and School Tours please contact Kathryn Wall first at [email protected]. She can collect all your information and get them in the database to accumulate hours toward membership and all the benefits that come with it! Mention your interest in the Children's Programming and School Tours and Kathryn will get your info to Joy Burns who runs the program. She will also answer any questions that you may have.
SAVE THE DATE
Roadside cleanup is scheduled for Friday the 19th of April. This is our twice a year service project to clean up trash along Angier Ave. Specific time and meeting location will be provided.
GROUND NESTING BEES SHOULD BE APPRECIATED AND NOT FEARED
Every year, from mid-March through mid-April, I get calls from folks worried about all the bees hovering over their lawns. They want to know how they can kill them because they are afraid they will sting their loved ones. This is the time of the year when our native ground nesting bees become active and start provisioning their nests. We have close to 400 species of ground nesting bees in North Carolina and they are beneficial pollinators that pose no threat to humans!
You can read all about them and see photos of some of the different types of ground nesting bees and their nests on the Growing Small Farms website. Hopefully after learning more about them you will feel inspired to protect and celebrate them and not fear them.
Visit the Growing Small Farms website to learn why Ground-nesting Bees Should Be Appreciated, Not Feared!
--
Debbie Roos
Agricultural Extension Agent
Chatham County Center
North Carolina Cooperative Extension
919.542.8244
GET READY FOR BROOD XIX
In April when the soil temperature reaches 64 degrees Brood XIX cicadas, otherwise known as the 13-year locusts or cicadas will emerge in our area of NC. Yeah, for the first time since 1803, they will emerge with Brood XIII, or the 17-year cicadas. However, the two areas where they will emerge really do not overlap. The cicadas are harmless to people and animals and are only a concern to young trees when the females make their slits in tender branches to lay eggs. Otherwise, they are free lawn aeration and a natural fertilizer when they die. Birds will pig out on them. Between emergence from the soil until they die, you can go to sleep with their melodious cacophony ringing in your ears. You should not have a hard time seeing them as the experts predict about one million cicadas per acre this year. We will see how accurate their prediction is.
So what do you do with all of these cicadas. EAT THEM! They are an excellent source of protein and free. If you eat shrimp at $15/pound cicadas are a bargain and taste similar. They are both arthropods. Basically, collect them in a bag and put them in the freezer for 2 to 3 hours to put them to "sleep". Then pull off the wings and legs and prepare them for cooking. There are actually many recipes on the web. At the simplest, mix an egg and flour with seasoning of your choice, roll them in the batter and fry them in oil for about 5 minutes. They are just like popcorn shrimp. I know, Americans aren't big insect eaters yet we enjoy shrimp, lobster, and live oysters (phlegm) on the half shell.