The Ancient Mariners Canoe Club (AMCC), in partnership with the Cambridge Bee City Team, invites everyone to see what the buzz is and to learn all about the role Cambridge plays in protecting its pollinators.
The Inaugural Cambridge Bee City Festival is set to take place at Riverbluffs Park in Cambridge on October 1 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the AMCC Boathouse.
The AMCC is a group of seniors, 55 and over, who share an interest in outdoor activities in including canoeing, hiking, cross-country skiing, but particularly, in preserving the environment.
In 2010, the club established the oldest pollinator project in the city with the Cambridge Pollinator Preserve and each year, fresh bee-friendly plants are added.
“We were one of the first groups to get our project in operation in 2009. We planted a few flower trees. We then received city approval for the project in 2010," said Ancient Mariners Canoe Club member, Jim Dyer, who is also chair of the Cambridge Pollinator Preserve.
Not only is the Cambridge Pollinator Preserve the oldest pollinator habitat project in Cambridge, but it also features a five-panel Education Centre which opened in 2012, and this year, marks its 10th anniversary.
To commemorate the anniversary, the Education Centre will be a major feature of the display panel that the Mariners will bring to the festival.
“At the festival, we will run a video slide show on the big screen at the boat house that will feature the story behind the creation of the Education Centre," Dyer said.
In June, 2021, Cambridge received its designation as a Bee City. The successful application was a team effort by eight community organizations, each of which had previously undertaken pollinator-friendly projects.
The Bee City Festival will offer an opportunity for a variety of community organizations to showcase their projects.
“We have a total of 12 displays coming, including one from RARE, the Butterfly Conservatory, the Idea Exchange, Cambridge Food Bank, City Green, and the four horticulture clubs in Cambridge will also be there,” Dyer said.
People can visit and learn about pollination ecology, what field projects are underway in the city, how gardeners have embraced the pollinator challenge, and how they too can create a pollinator habitat.
Visitors can walk through the Cambridge Pollinator Preserve and Education Centre just behind the boathouse.
“It will be a walk-through so people can pick and choose the displays that most interest them,” Dyer said.
“The Cambridge Pollinator Reserve is actually about a three-minute walk from the building where the festival will be. People will be out at the Preserve to explain the process of how we create a pollinating habitat.”
Dyer said that with many bee populations being threatened, so too, is their diversity.
"This can limit natural ecosystems. Small organizations can actually make a contribution through the creation of habitat. Even in urban settings, by just planting a mix of plants that can provide nectar and pollen can help. It means avoiding ornamentals in favour of native species,” Dyer said.
“There are ways that people can learn how to create these habitats. It can become a hobby. It’s also very rewarding. When you really start to watch pollinators, you will see the beautiful diversity.”
For more information, about the Ancient Mariners Canoe Club of Cambridge, visit the club’s Facebook page, here.
