Well, seeing as I have not yet had a chance to transplant my flowers into the ground (there was a risk of frost last night), I will instead write a quick note about bees... Why not eh? :)
Yesterday, I found a bee inside my house, sitting on the floor by the patio door. He seemed a little stunned actually, and barely moved when I placed a drinking glass over him to transport him outside. In light of the recent news stories about bumble bees (and the threat of their extinction in Europe), I am trying to be very careful about not disturbing any of my two-toned buddies in our yard. Come to think of it though, I've never been really afraid of bumble bees - they're so fat and fuzzy, and slow moving, that it doesn't strike the same fear into my heart that a wasp (evil things) does when it buzzes around me. Anyway, according to some articles I read today on the bumble bee problem overseas, it seems that farming is killing them off. Kind of interesting to hear that farming, which to me always seemed like a nice 'back to the land', natural way of life (like the opposite to the industrial crap that is destroying our Earth), is actually hurting our environment. Not only does it kill the bees (in the UK, for example, they talk of how large farms are wiping out natural grasses and flowers, in favour of growing more sterile products like rye grasses for the market), it also harms local plants. As the article I read suggests, the absence of bees means pollen isn't being transported from flower to flower, and in turn, may mean an end to many wild flowers and trees that depend upon this method to reproduce. Also, I have read before that farming of course wipes out natural habitats for many species of insects, birds and animals, and the worst part is that nowadays the crops these gigantic farms are growing often aren't natural - they're all ramped up on 'plant roids' so to speak, which throws things out of balance. Plus, there are varieties of crops that don't reseed themselves (as an effort to control the market and force farmers to pay for seeds each year). It's like replacing forests with plastic trees, they wouldn't re-seed themselves, so every time you cut them down (this is silly but anyway) you'd have to put more plastic trees there as you would have wiped out all the natural plants when you cleared your 'fields'. It all ties back into what I was writing in my other blog about using heirloom seeds in your garden (to help preserve some of the older, sustainable plants that were grown by people for generations here - instead of all these crazy chemical-dependent, disease intolerant, oversized plants that the scientists are cooking up in their labs. (As a side-note, if you're looking for an interesting debate - check out the one over genetically modified foods. I'm actually confused and want to do some more research as I've heard two conflicting things about new crops - some things I've read say they're more dependent upon pesticides and less disease tolerant, while the other side says they're hardier because they've been genetically engineered to withstand certain natural threats they would have otherwise fallen prey to - either way, I hear it's not a certifiably 'healthy' choice and it's been known to kill insects (like the monarch butterflies that died from the pollen found in GM corn...))... Since, it's summer, go find yourself some locally grown crops (markets and roadside stands are fun :) ) - they taste better anyway!

Anyway, I'm way off track, I just had to say I was happy to hear that Luc saw my bee buzzing around in the back yard after I brought him outside. :) So next time you see a bee, remember that, because of him, you'll have pretty flowers growing in your area - so don't kill him! :)