California Bees and Blooms: A Guide for Gardeners and Naturalists

California is home to over sixteen hundred species of wild bees that pollinate our gardens, fields, and urban green spaces, even as Colony Collapse Disorder lakes its toll on domesticated honey bees. This new guidebook by the state's preeminent bee and botany experts provides an up-close view of the humming, buzzing creatures that shape entire ecosystems. With its emphasis on the vital relationship between bees and flowers, California Bees and Blooms also shows you how to grow plants that help bees thrive. Impressively detailed and easy to use, this guide includes: Over 200 full-color photographs, diagrams, and illustrations, Descriptions of behavior, social structures, flight season, preferred flowers, and natural enemies, Advice for growing and managing bee-friendly plants, "Recipes" For bee habitat gardens-even far brown thumb gardeners, Information about citizen-led projects to protect and raise awareness about wild bees