The Great Sunflower Project

Supporting native bees and other pollinators is critically important. I've written on the importance of insects and other creepy crawlies in my essay, In Praise of Insects. I've written about some of the endangered and extinct insects my essay, Endangered and Extinct Insects. And I've given tips and resources for native bee and butterfly conservation in my essay, Insect Conservation. Obviously this is an important issue for me.

I recently came across the website for The Great Sunflower Project, which is a citizen science project to monitor and promote native bee populations. Here is how they describe themselves:

"The Great Sunflower Project is accelerating the pace of pollinator conservation by empowering people from pre-schoolers to scientists to make the world a better place for bees. The idea is simple; gardeners plant a sunflower and then time how long it takes for five bees to visit. Gardens that quickly see bees are healthy. Gardens that don't see bees aren't. The sunflowers are both a thermometer measuring the health of the bee community across the continent and a wonderful resource making each garden where they are planted a better place for bees. Join us at www.GreatSunflower.org!"

I hope everyone will take a few minutes to check out their website, learn about the project and find out how you can participate this coming year. I know I will be!

Note: I want make everyone aware that I am on Twitter. You can find me at http://twitter.com/TimGamble . Not only do I alert people whenever I make an important blog post to any of my blogs, but I occasionally point out additional news, articles and websites that may be of interest. I also let people in on some of the things going on in my life outside my blogging. But don't worry, I never tweet more than once or twice a day, and many days I don't tweet at all, so you want be flooded with tweets if you start following me.

Thanks for reading the Modern Victory Movement blog!

Some Interesting Links

Here are some links that may be of interest to readers of the Modern Victory Movement blog:

"How To" Central - Website of Popular Mechanics, with detailed instructions and videos for hundreds of do-it-yourself projects - everything from car maintenance to home repairs, from finding potable water in the wilderness to surviving a tornado. The perfect website for those wanting to build self-reliance.

50 Simple Things You Can Do To Save The Earth - Based on the book by the same name, this website gives lots of tips, ideas and simple projects people can do to live more environmentally friendly lives. Great for projects to do with the kids.

Backyard Wildlife Program - A program of the National Wildlife Federation, you can use this site to learn how to turn your backyard, no matter how small, into a welcoming wildlife sanctuary. You can even get your yard certified by the NWF.

Article Archive for Countryside Journal - Countryside & Small Stock Journal is one of the best magazines for small farms, homesteading and self-reliance lifestyles that you can read. Their archive section constains hundreds of useful articles you can read for free.

Mother Earth News - The classic magazine of the homesteading and "back to basics" movement. You can find lots of useful articles from past issues on their website.

Living Off Grid - Website offers tips and information for off-grid living.

Food Coop Directory Service - Website provides information on food coops and acts as a database listing food coops in the USA, Canada, Australia and Ireland.

Seed Savers Exchange - Offers heirloom and heritage plants and seeds.

Heirloom Acres Seeds - Offers heirloom and heritage plants and seeds.

Plants For A Future - Website has articles and information for woodland (forest) gardening. Also maintains separate databases of useful plants (edible, medicinal, etc.) in the USA and the UK.

Toby Hemenway Essays - Website contains the excellent essays of permaculturist Toby Hemenway. Highly recommended.

Trees are the Answer - Essay by Dr. Patrick Moore promoting the idea that trees and sustainable forestry offer the best answers for many of the problems facing our civilization. Highly recommended.

Xerces Society - The Xerces Society promotes insect conservation. You can find lots of information on their website on making your yard and garden much more friendly for butterflies, native bees and other important pollinators.

Arbor Day Foundation - The Arbor Day Foundation promotes tree planting. On the website you will find lots of information including a interactive database for finding the best trees for your location, climate, soils and needs. They also sell low-cost trees and shrubs.

Dave Ramsey - Dave Ramsey is an expert in personal finances and debt reduction who offers practical, down-to-Earth advice for getting out of debt and getting your personal finances in order. He does not offer hot stock tips or get rich quick ideas, instead giving real advice that actually works. Highly Recommended for those in debt.

Dr. Andrew Weil - A medical doctor that offers scientifically sound health advice from a holistic perspective that emphasizes prevention first, then natural & alternative treatments before resorting to expensive drug therapies or invasive surgery.