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:

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.

TASK: 3. Read a book with the word "crack" in the text.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Love, Theoretically/Ali Hazelwood
PAGES: 389
DATE READ: 7/1/24
HOW IT FITS: The word "crack" is in the text (pg. 104 - Except Jack is staring at it, eyes on the crack splitting the lock screen.)

TASK: 1. Read a book where the MC is not tidy.
BOOK/AUTHOR: All Good People Here/Ashley Flowers
PAGES: 312
DATE READ: 7/7/24
HOW IT FITS: One of the MC's house is very untidy.

TASK: 2. Read a book with a flower pot, window box or other small garden on the cover.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Kiss Her Once for Me/Alison Cochrun
PAGES: 368
DATE READ: 7/9/24
HOW IT FITS: There is a flower pot on the cover.

Step 1 Completed

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

TASK: 1. Read a book by an author whose initials are NOT found in the word PESTICIDE.
BOOK/AUTHOR: The Shunning/Beverly Lewis
PAGES: 282
DATE READ: 7/9/24
HOW IT FITS: The author's initials are "B" and "L".

TASK: 3. Read a book with the word "organic" in the text.
BOOK/AUTHOR: The Love of my Life/Rosie Walsh
PAGES: 372
DATE READ: 7/11/24
HOW IT FITS: The word "organic" is in the text (pg. 35 - "It's lined with organic cotton," she says defensively.)

TASK: 2. Read a book where the MC is very sensitive (your interpretation).
BOOK/AUTHOR: Lightning in a Mirror/Jayne Ann Krentz
PAGES: 310
DATE READ: 7/12/24
HOW IT FITS: Olivia's unique psychic talent makes her sensitive to the aura of others.

Step 2 Completed

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

TASK: 1. Read a book with the word "essential" in the text.
BOOK/AUTHOR: The Awakening/Kelley Armstrong
PAGES: 360
DATE READ: 7/13/24
HOW IT FITS: The word "essential" is in the text (pg. 9 - An essential part of the storytelling process.)

TASK: 2. Read a book where a character is a good cook (food source) for other characters.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Light Through the Vines/Fiona Valpy
PAGES: 216
DATE READ: 7/15/24
HOW IT FITS: A character is described as a good cook.

TASK: 3. Read a book with a shelter of some kind on the cover (tent, lean-to, etc.)
BOOK/AUTHOR: Murder at The Campground: A Cuban Cozy Mystery, Book 1/Ileana Muñoz Renfroe
PAGES: 182
DATE READ: 7/16/24
HOW IT FITS: There is a tent on the cover.

Step 3 Completed

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

TASK: 3. Read a book where the MC is very shallow.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Sister Friends Forever/Kimberla Lawson Roby
PAGES: 336
DATE READ: 7/20/24
HOW IT FITS: One of the MC's is shallow because she only looks for men who are well-educated and have money without taking into account any other attributes.

TASK: 2. Read a book where a character becomes very thirsty.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Undead and Unwed/MaryJanice Davidson
PAGES: 320
DATE READ: 7/22/24
HOW IT FITS: The MC becomes very thirsty for blood when she is turned into a vampire.

TASK: 1. Read a book whose author's initials can be found in the word WATER.
BOOK/AUTHOR: A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them/Timothy Egan
PAGES: 432
DATE READ: 7/26/24
HOW IT FITS: The author's initials are "T" and "E".

Step 4 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

TASK: 1. Read a book that has a bare yard in at least one scene.
BOOK/AUTHOR: The Best Is Yet to Come/Debbie Macomber
PAGES: 304
DATE READ: 7/27/24
HOW IT FITS: There is a scene where a dog is walking in a bare yard.

TASK: 2. Read a book whose author's initials are in the word UNTOUCHED.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Tell No One/Harlan Coben
PAGES: 370
DATE READ: 7/30/24
HOW IT FITS: The author's initials are "H" and "C"

TASK: 3. Read a book with a character who builds a nest (can be a figurative nest if the character is a human).
BOOK/AUTHOR: The Secret/J.L. Beck
PAGES: 293
DATE READ: 8/1/24
HOW IT FITS: The MC builds a "nest" of friends and family.

Step 5 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

TASK: 3. Read a book where a character stalks something.
BOOK/AUTHOR: The Doll/Taylor Stevens
PAGES: 335
DATE READ: 8/14/24
HOW IT FITS: The MC is stalked by a hitman.

TASK: 2. Read a book with an author whose initials can be found in the word CAVITY.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Clean SweepIlona Andrews
PAGES: 227
DATE READ: 8/18/24
HOW IT FITS: The author's initials are "I" and "A".

TASK: 1. Read a book about a character who waits to do something until later.
BOOK/AUTHOR: The Seeds of Change/Lauraine Snelling
PAGES: 336
DATE READ: 8/26/24
HOW IT FITS: Forsythia and Adam wait until the spring to get married despite his desire to get married sooner.

Step 6 Completed

Last step!!


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

TASK: 2. Read a book with the word "honey" in the text.
BOOK/AUTHOR: This Could Be Us/Kennedy Ryan
PAGES: 416
DATE READ: 9/4/24
HOW IT FITS: The word "honey" is in the text (pg. 16 - "Thank you, honey.")

TASK: 1. Read a book where the MC sells or buys a locally grown product.
BOOK/AUTHOR: Milk Glass Moon/Adriana Trigiani
PAGES: 272
DATE READ: 9/11/24
HOW IT FITS: Ave Marie buys locally grown products while in Italy.

TASK: 3. Read a book with a character who suffers from allergies.
BOOK/AUTHOR: By Book or By Crook/Eva Gates
PAGES: 327
DATE READ: 9/19/24
HOW IT FITS: A character is allergic to cats.

Step 7 Completed

CONGRATULATIONS!! You saved the bees!