Thank you for taking the time to explore our volunteer opportunities for the Bee Garden!
The Bee Garden was established by volunteers like yourself to help educate the community about the bees we coexist with and more importantly the healthy environment that we need to embrace. No experience is needed to help and we want this to be a safe space to learn and educate others! Below are some of the opportunities we have for volunteering, a brief overview of what needs to be done and how you can help.
Apiary - The apiary will need a good cleaning using good, old-fashioned elbow grease. Along with the cleaning, we will need to have the "roof" of the apiary fixed. The roof consists of chicken wire so the bees can freely go in and out while keeping out the loose debris and pests.
Education Site - The education site consists of the benches and archway south of the apiary. Weeding and cleaning this site will be on the agenda as weeds pop up during spring and summer.
The benches and pavers leading to the archway will need to be cleaned using a pressure washer or some other high pressured tool. While not necessary, staining the benches and archway will increase the longevity of the materials.
Signs: Signs are in dire need of cleaning. There are multiple signs around the garden and many have moss growing on them. The West Seattle Bee Garden main entrance sign will need new plexiglass as the current glass has cracks due to age. Along with replacing the plexiglass, wasps nests will need to be removed before wasps make a home and be cleaned
Bee Garden: The garden is where the most help is needed. The garden is due east of the apiary with 4 beds adjacent to the P-Patch. Two beds have an apple tree in each bed with some Oregon grapes lining the outside.
The current plan for these 4 beds is to plant as many native plants as possible. Weeding and maintenance is crucial throughout spring and summer due to the amount of horsetail that will pop up. Horsetail has been prominent in the garden and has overgrown other perennials in the past. The goal is to establish the plants early and throughout two seasons to overshadow any horsetail growth (and hopefully have them coexist with each other) so that we can educate the community of native plants.
The beds are currently in disarray - the wood that borders the 4 beds will need to get replaced, irrigation lines checked and weeds cleared before any planting can start. We will need volunteers to help sort this out one bed at a time. There are currently weed patches popping up and the hope is to have pavers be installed in the worst spots to mitigate future weeds. The apple trees will need to be pruned back.
Fence Border: Along the side of the apiary and on the fence line to the gardens, weeding is crucial to maintain the gardens inviting nature. There are currently some perennial plants that may need to get moved.
