The Challenge Factory discussion

Save the Bees!
Challenge Starts July 1, 2024

There are over 20,000 bee species found in the world. This diversity encompasses some of the most important insects for agriculture, wild plants, and home gardens.
Many plants rely on pollinators, including bees, for pollination. Some plants are fully dependent on bees, while others are only partially dependent.
Fully dependent plants include brazil nuts, cocoa beans, kiwi and melons. Partially dependent plants include avocados, coffee and nuts. Other plants that rely on bees are almonds, apples, apricots, blueberries, cotton, papaya, passionfruit, and strawberries.

Take seven steps to help protect the bees! Each step requires 3 books.

There is an optional spell out for each level as well. For spell outs, you may use the first letter of the first word of the title (using or omitting an opening A/An/The), or the first letter of the author's first or last name.

Post your completions in your own thread. You may take as long as you need to complete this challenge.

Sample completion post:

TASK:
BOOK/AUTHOR:
PAGES:
DATE READ:
HOW IT FITS:

I want to save all of them, particularly my favourite Australian native, the Teddy Bear Bee - true name 🤗🥰

Amazing!! I'll post the first set of tasks this weekend so you can plan.

Plant a Bee Garden
Keeping a tidy garden may actually backfire for bees. This is because it removes items and sites that are usually used by the insects. Only honeybees form hives, while 70% of the rest of bees nest in the ground and 30% use cracks and crevices as their bee home.

One of the largest threats to bees is a lack of safe habitat where they can build homes and find a variety of nutritious food sources. You can create a safe haven for bees with pollen- and nectar-rich flowers by planting a range of shapes, sizes, colors, and bloom times. You don’t need a ton of space to grow bee-friendly plants — gardens can be established across yards and in window boxes, flower pots, and mixed into vegetable gardens. Seek out locally native plants as often as possible as many bee species have coevolved to feed exclusively on native flowers and need them to survive.

Tasks:
1. Read a book where the MC is not tidy.
2. Read a book with a flower pot, window box or other small garden on the cover.
3. Read a book with the word "crack" in the text.

Optional Spell Out: SAFE HAVEN

REMEMBER: Books completed before July 1st will not count for this challenge.

Plant a Bee Garden

Task: 1
Book: Three Little Truths by Eithne Shortall
Date: 8/7 3★
Pages: 400
Fit: MCs Martha & Robin are untidy

Task: 2
Book: The Little Flower Shop by Lori Foster
Date: 1/7 2★
Pages: 336
Fit:

Task: 3
Book: Origin in Death by J.D. Robb
Date: 2/7 3★
Pages: 347
Fit: "He'd make some crack when she walked in" p.56

Plant a Bee Garden complete.

Go Chemical-Free for Bees
Regardless of which flowers you plant, avoid using pesticides and herbicides. Synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides, and neonicotinoids are harmful to bees, wreaking havoc on their sensitive systems. A garden can thrive without these harmful chemicals — in fact, one goal of a bee-friendly garden is to build a sustainable ecosystem that keeps itself in check by fostering beneficial populations. If you must use a pesticide, choose a targeted organic product, and always avoid applying pesticides directly to the soil or when flowers are blooming.

Tasks:
1. Read a book by an author whose initials are NOT found in the word PESTICIDE.
2. Read a book where the MC is very sensitive (your interpretation).
3. Read a book with the word "organic" in the text.

Optional Spell Out: SUSTAINABLE

Go Chemical-Free for Bees

Task: 1
Book: The Sands Of Windee by Arthur W. Upfield
Date: 9/7 3.5★
Pages: 329
Fit: author initials NOT in PESTICIDE

Task: 2
Book: The Radio Hour by Victoria Purman
Date: 15/7 5★
Pages: 400
Fit: MC is sensitive to her position & the knife-edge she's walking

Task: 3
Book: Gunshot Road by Adrian Hyland
Date: 4/8 4★
Pages: 437
Fit: "the organic and the mechanical" p.366

Go Chemical-Free for Bees complete

Provide Trees for Bees
Did you know that bees get most of their nectar from trees? When a tree blooms, it provides thousands of blossoms to feed from. Trees are not only a great food source for bees, but also an essential habitat. Tree leaves and resin provide nesting material for bees, while natural wood cavities make excellent shelters. Native trees such as maples, redbuds, and black cherry all attract and support bees. You can help bolster bee food sources and habitat by caring for and planting trees. Trees are also great at sequestering carbon, managing our watersheds, and cooling air temperatures.

Tasks:
1. Read a book with the word "essential" in the text.
2. Read a book where a character is a good cook (food source) for other characters.
3. Read a book with a shelter of some kind on the cover (tent, lean-to, etc.)

Optional Spell Out: BLOSSOMS

Provide Trees for Bees

Task: 1
Book: The Renegades of Pern by Anne McCaffrey
Date: 11/8 3★
Pages: 384
Fit: "he also recognised the essential injustice" p.42

Task: 2
Book: Away with the Penguins by Hazel Prior
Date: 5/8 4★
Pages: 352
Fit: Patrick is a good cook & cooks for the research team on Locket Is.

Task: 3
Book: Ladies' Night in Finbar's Hotel by Dermot Bolger, Maeve Binchy, Claire Boylan, Emma Donoghue, Anne Haverty, Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, Kate O'Riordan, Deirdre Purcell
Date: 9/8 2★
Pages: 352
Fit: shelter of some kind on the cover - hotel

Create a Bee Bath
Bees work up quite a thirst foraging and collecting nectar. Fill a shallow bird bath or bowl with clean water, and arrange pebbles and stones inside so that they break the water’s surface. Bees will land on the stones and pebbles to take a long, refreshing drink.

Tasks:
1. Read a book whose author's initials can be found in the word WATER.
2. Read a book where a character becomes very thirsty.
3. Read a book where the MC is very shallow.

Optional Spell Out: REFRESHING

Create a Bee Bath

Task: 1
Book: Death Holds the Key by Alexander Thorpe
Date: 25/8 4★
Fit: author's initials can be found in the word WATER

Task: 2
Book: Grumpy Old Men: The Secret Diary by Stuart Prebble
Date: 21/8 3★
Fit: "I eventually got so hot and restless and thirsty" p.87

Task: 3
Book: Wicked Pleasure by Nina Bangs
Date: 20/8 1★
Fit: shallow MC

Create a Bee Bath completed.

Protect Ground Nesting Bees
Did you know that 70% of the world’s 20,000 bees — including bumblebees — live underground. There, they build nests and house their young, who overwinter and emerge each spring. Ground nesting bees need bare, mulch-free, well-drained, protected soil in a sunny area to create and access their nests. Leave an untouched section for ground nesting bees in your garden!

Tasks:
1. Read a book that has a bare yard in at least one scene.
2. Read a book whose author's initials are in the word UNTOUCHED.
3. Read a book with a character who builds a nest (can be a figurative nest if the character is a human).

Optional Spell Out: UNDERGROUND

Protect Ground Nesting Bees

Task: 1
Book: Undara by Annie Seaton
Date: 13/9 3★
Fit: bare yard - "The building was surrounded by acres of dry brown grass, broken only by dead tree stumps" p.6

Task: 2
Book: The Door-to-Door Bookstore by Carsten Henn
Date: 14/10 3.5★
Fit: author initials in UNTOUCHED

Task: 3
Book: Glenrock by Lee Christine
Date: 11/9 4★
Fit: MC Callan has built a nest for himself & his son

Protect Ground Nesting Bees completed

Leave Stems Behind
30% of bees live in holes inside of trees, logs, or hollow plant stems. Don’t cut those hollow stems, which are valuable bee habitats. A hollow stem may not seem like prime real estate to us, but to the mason and other bees, it’s a cozy home in which they may overwinter. Wait until the spring to cut back dead flower stalks, leaving stems 8 to 24 inches high to provide homes for cavity-nesting bees.

Tasks:
1. Read a book about a character who waits to do something until later.
2. Read a book with an author whose initials can be found in the word CAVITY.
3. Read a book where a character stalks something.

Optional Spell Out: PLANT STEM

Leave Stems Behind

Task: 1
Book: His Name Was Walter by Emily Rodda
Date: 17/10/24 5★
Fit: Walter waits until later, until he's old enough

Task: 2
Book: Homecoming by Isabel Ashdown
Date: 28/10 3★
Fit: author initials in CAVITY

Task: 3
Book: Something Wicked by Carolyn G. Hart
Date: 16/10 1.5★
Fit: MC stalks a murderer who is stalking the theatre

Leave Stems Behind complete

Support Local Beekeepers and Organizations
Local beekeepers work hard to nurture their bees and the local community. The easiest way to show your appreciation is to buy locally-made honey and beeswax products. Many beekeepers use products from their hives to create soaps, lotions, and beeswax candles. Plus, local honey is not only delicious — it is made from local flora and may help with seasonal allergies! You can also give time, resources, and monetary donations to local beekeeping societies and environmental groups to help their programs grow.

Tasks:
1. Read a book where the MC sells or buys a locally grown product.
2. Read a book with the word "honey" in the text.
3. Read a book with a character who suffers from allergies.

Optional Spell Out: APPRECIATION

Support Local Beekeepers and Organizations

Task: 1
Book: Island in the Sun by Katie Fforde
Date: 30/10 2.5★
Fit: MC buys locally grown produce on Dominica

Task: 2
Book: First Impressions by Nora Roberts
Date: 29/10 2★
Fit: "to frame her face in a deep honey blonde" p.9

Task: 3
Book: Little Bookshop of Murder by Maggie Blackburn
Date: 25/11 2★
Fit: Hildy was allergic to cats

Support Local Beekeepers and Organizations completed

CONGRATULATIONS!! You saved the bees!