bees

I hung a beer trap above my table in August just to keep the wasps off the plates: when I emptied the bottle a week later, I saw what I had really caught

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I hung a beer trap above my table in August just to keep the wasps off the plates: when I emptied the bottle a week later,...

A simple beer trap promised wasp-free summer dinners, but opening the bottle revealed an unintended tragedy: dead bees, hoverflies, and moths alongside the wasps. The same sugary scent that attracts pests also lures pollinators—and most DIY traps can’t tell the difference.

I mowed my clover lawn below 5 cm just to keep it tidy: when I went looking for the bees in June, it was already too late

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I mowed my clover lawn below 5 cm just to keep it tidy: when I went looking for the bees in June, it was already too late

A seemingly tidy 5cm mow destroys clover flowers before they bloom, leaving bees with nothing to eat all summer. Research shows raising your mower deck and extending the interval between cuts can triple bee activity on residential lawns.