Blog

  • Native Plants, Growing with Dana

    After making buckets, I attended the lecture at Agnes Scott that Peter and I have co-organized: Growing with Dana, part of the Building on Dana project this year at the Dana Fine Arts Building, Agnes Scott College. 

    Allison Erickson, Urban Naturalist at City of Decatur and Mary Jane Leach of Beech Hollow Farms talked about how city initiatives are removing invasives and planting natives and also supporting residents to do the same. Beech Hollow opens this weekend at their shop on Clarendon Avenue in Avondale Estates. They are an incredible source of knowledge and native plants. 

  • Buckets!

    I have spent the last few months ordering different components and testing and researching design ideas to figure out a bucket that is 1) effective 2) minimal [design is everything to me, truth be told] 3) low cost 4) dog and squirrel and soccer ball proof (still crossing my fingers on this one).

    I made the first buckets of the season with a neighbor. Thanks, Molly, for your help and support!

    We are ready to assemble and deliver B-asic Buckets! And Intown Ace Hardware also has everything you need (they sourced hydroponic lids; please thank them — that took a lot of effort).

    Look for the model bucket and sign at the sign at 123 Jefferson Place! I aim to be the first street in Decatur completely covered by buckets!

  • Getting the Word Out

    This initiative is certainly a family affair. My son, who has grown up with education about and advocacy for reducing pesticides, is eager to help spread the word. He was excited to choose and install one of our signs; he selected the one with dog in honor of our pups.

    Among the reasons that we choose not to use pesticides and herbicides on our yard is the higher incidence of cancer in dogs that live in yards that spray (as much as 70% higher). Dogs are also at risk when they go on walks and sniff yards that have  sprayed with pesticides. Pre-emergents are the most toxic, in my understanding.

    If you are a parent and/or pet-loving human especially, please do your own research and understand the risks to people, pets, pollinators, and planet. Here are two good places to start: Non-Toxic Communities and Beyond Pesticides. 

     

  • Signs

    While this does not rise to the level of the conventional bucket list, today I realized on of my longterm goals when I picked up these signs, designed by Nell Ruby. Thanks, Nell!

    The are significant revisions of the pesticide warning signs that companies leave to warn residents to stay off lawns for hours after a chemical application, whether a pyrethroid pesticide, fogger sprayed on foundations and shrubs to kill or 2, 4-D pre-emergent herbicide, hose applied as a weedkiller on grass. 

    In my opinion, we should all be seeking alternatives and questioning the safety of these applications. The longterm health effects on humans for the former are unknown; in my understanding, the latter is one of two chemicals that made up Agent Orange, banned in some countries, still allowed here, and masked by the proprietary claims of many companies. 

    These small signs are big advocacy and resistance, hopefully unexpected, even subversive enough to draw attention — and to start conversation. Please ask questions. 

    And anticipate one sign per order of buckets; also available for order.

  • A New Bee City in Our Vicinity!

    Avondale Estates just announced today that the community has joined the Bee City affiliates. Welcome!

    Read the full story here.

  • Thanks, Beecatur!

    Thank you, Peter/Beecatur, for including us in your newsletter today. We are working hard to get the site finished and supplies gathered and instructions posted (if you want to purchase them at Intown Ace Hardware on Scott Blvd), aiming for everything to be fully available by the end of the day. Our inclusion in your newsletter is additional motivation! As always, I appreciate your support and expertise, Peter!

  • Decatur Focus

    Thank you, City of Decatur, for highlighting our work on landcare, biodiversity, and IPMs in the current issues of the Decatur Focus (page 20). The story covers the IPM toolkit introduced by the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation and the connections between Bee City USA – Decatur and Bee Campus USA – Decatur (People for Pollinators, Agnes Scott College), who have been working toward similar goas. Their efforts toward IPMs, also part of the Growing with Dana series (Building on Dana / Patterns in Space, Dalton Gallery, Dana Fine Arts Building) inspired the collaboration that has led to the launch of B Buckets. Join us!

  • Intown Experiments

    In addition to offering buckets directly, we are developing and instructions for Intown Ace Hardware, revising our bucket designs slightly to accommodate the materials they have in stock or on order, especially for this project. Black buckets arrive on Friday, March 7. Thanks, Andy Jones, for your help thinking through solutions for design challenges. Here is a preview of the location–shelf still in progress–in case you want to DIY as early as this weekend — it is time, Decatur!

     

  • World Wildlife Day

    Re:wild Your Campus just reminded us that today is World Wildlife Day, a great day to be launching this work to support pollinators. Re:wild Your Campus is an amazing organization, started by undergraduates to encourage the reduction of herbicides on their UC Berkeley campus. Today Mackenzie Feldman, founding director, and Shaina Crystal, co-director, continue to support students, staff, and faculty on college campuses across the US in their efforts to reduce and eliminate herbicides and pesticides.

    Nell and I have completed their Advocacy Bootcamp. And RYC has just announced a new bootcamp and program for K-12 schools, with a free webinar on March 8 at 9:00 am EST. I will be reaching out to our local school system tomorrow.

  • Local Buckets – Intown Ace

    Today I picked up buckets from Intown Ace Hardware on Scott Blvd in Decatur (thank you, Tony and Andy!) to get started on workshops and distributions before the season starts. Intown Ace is stocking supplies and posting our instructions, coming soon. They provided all of the buckets and MosquitoDunks for the workshop in the “Growing with Dana” series at Agnes Scott on Feb. 26, the first time that Peter and I presented together.

    We are so grateful for their continuing support of our initiative.

    We have included instructions on OUR BUCKETS page. Whether you buy ours or DIY some, please consider trying buckets rather than spraying! And please shop local!