On March 13, 14 members of the Gateway Garden Club celebrated the coming of spring, St. Patrick’s Day and Pi Day as they met at the home of Mary Duke, with Judy Childs and Donna Yost as co-hostesses.
After a delicious lunch, featuring several types of savory and sweet pies, the group was treated to a very informative program and a and talk on Bee City & Bees As Pollinators by Linda Layne.
Layne first heard about Bee City in Berlin, Maryland, so she decided to bring the idea back to our area and shared how they established Shepherdstown as a Bee City in 2023. There are 431 Bee Cities and Bee Campuses in the United States and Shepherdstown is the fifth town in West Virginia to become a Bee City. Shepherd University, along with WVU, are both now listed as a Bee Campus.
She also gave the members a lot of very good information on what they can do to help pollinators: 1) Plant native plants and pollinator gardens, 2) Find alternatives to harmful pesticides, 3) Preserve nesting sites, as many pollinators nest on the ground and 4) Educate and spread awareness.
Additionally, we can: 1) Cut flowers off stems a foot or more above the ground to provide a place for bees to nest in the stems.
2) Leave the leaves on the ground in the fall.
3) Keep grass cut to 4 inches or taller and wait to cut until we have 3 consecutive days of 55 degrees or over.
4) Reduce plants that provide little help to pollinators (like boxwoods). 5) Plant natives and plants that support the feeding and nesting of pollinators.
For more information on Bee City, go to
A short business meeting, led by our VP Pam Rockwell, followed Linda’s interesting presentation.
The club discussed ordering GGC club t-shirts ,the upcoming Shenandoah-Potomac House and Garden tour, & spring community beautification & planting projects.
For more info Ron Gateway Garden Club, go their Facebook page or contact the President, Sue Ann Palmer sueannpalmer@ymail.com
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