Monday, March 16, 2009

Free sunflowers for us and the bees

I love freebies and found a great one today. I was looking for free seeds and came across a site that is giving away free sunflower seeds. With this site there is a catch, but this catch is more than worth it.
The Great Sunflower Project

In exchange for free sunflower seeds, the site asks that you watch the flowers as they grow. They are studying bees, colony collapse disorder and are trying to figure out a way to solve the problem.

From their site:
How will the Great Sunflower Project help?
By watching and recording the bees at sunflowers in your garden, you can help us understand the challenges that bees are facing. We'll be sending out annual Lemon Queen sunflower seeds in early March 2009. Just in time to plant!
It takes less than 30 minutes.
It's easy.
Free Sunflower seeds for planting.
No knowledge of bees required!
Enter your bee counts online or send us your paper form.

It's very easy to sign up for this project. You just enter your e-mail address and home address for them to mail the seeds. If you wish, you can even supply the seeds yourself though they ask that you use a specific kind of sunflower so that their study functions properly.

The site is worth checking out. There is a forum, map of participants, a bee guide, tips on how to create a bee garden and so much more. They also have resources for teachers and students. They encourage groups to participate in the project, so if you know of a school, scout group or anyone else that could benefit from this please pass it on!

I am no gardener. I kill plants with ease. But two years ago a neighbor gave us some sunflowers and their ability to take care of themselves wowed me. Those flowers are amazing! I am really looking forward to this project!!
Keep your eyes open for updates about this project.


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