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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Victorious Raiders parade trophy through downtown Ashland State police search for pursuit suspect near Hyatt Lake Police Reports Cheering on the champs Ashland's Safeway part of Haggen acquisition Education For a friend: AHS seniors team up to help former fellow student Ashland builds a bridge across the STEM gap Chicken pox hits Ashland Middle School AHS speech and debate team to compete in Medford Ashland: Lions Club steps up for vision tests Environment New TAP pumps bolster Ashland's options Most residents speak against gas pipeline proposed for Southern Oregon Home Help: Make your new house feel like home ‘Tis the season — for wild mushrooms Business Ashland's Safeway part of Haggen acquisition The Playwright pub will be serving again Saturday Mt. Ashland managers ponder opening this week Hats with a Past Employment in Oregon surpasses pre-recession levels Politics and elections State certifies recount showing failure of GMO-labeling measure Local rep to testify before U.S. Senate panel Tuesday Kent Bush: First Amendment doesn’t mean what you think it means Miller write-in campaign lands Ashland Parks and Rec seat State News In Portland, mindfulness classes ease stress of high school GMO label measure, losing by 809 votes, headed for recount Resent ballots, late results likely to trigger GMO recount Nation - World Obama makes Maduro’s ‘insolent Yankees’ line harder to sell Grand jury won't indict Ferguson cop in shooting Obituaries Death Notices Death Notices Bernard Eugene Krueger Death Notices Christina Lea "Mima" Jacobson Shareable Sports Latest Stories Raiders bring it home Weber's triple-double help SOU men survive OT thriller For fans who made trip, title game special Cheering on the champs NATIONAL CHAMPIONS! SOU tops Marian in NAIA football finals High school Shibley-Styer, Malcolm lead Grizzlies to comeback win over Henley Feinberg scores 17 in Grizz loss Grizzlies tripped up late in tourney loss to Ridgeview Grizzlies' comeback attempt falls short against Mazama Ashland girls win three duals in home swim meet Southern Oregon University Raiders bring it home Weber's triple-double help SOU men survive OT thriller For fans who made trip, title game special Cheering on the champs Shibley-Styer, Malcolm lead Grizzlies to comeback win over Henley Opinion Latest Stories Herb Rothschild Jr.: The Christmas spirit Our View: Good news this week The vaccination deniers Granlund cartoon: Christmas season Matthew T. Mangino: The future of the death penalty in question? Editorial Our View: Good news this week The vaccination deniers Other Views: Hunting helps the economy Our View: ACH's remarkable recovery Our View: Growing up is inevitable Letters Letters to the Editor, Dec. 17 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 16 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 11 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 8 Letters to the Editor, Dec. 5 Guest opinions Herb Rothschild Jr.: The Christmas spirit Guest Opinion: Heard the buzz about Bee City USA? Herb Rothschild Jr.: Fight Zionist suppression Guest Opinion: Life — and death — by choice Guest Opinion: The environmental tipping point Revels Latest Stories Dancing People Company celebrates the Winter Solstice 4 Things to do this weekend Listings for Varsity Theatre and Ashland Street Cinemas Best Bets: Dec. 18-24 'Homesman' plays grit and despair perfectly Theater ACT presents reading of 'The Quality of Life' Putting the music into 'A Christmas Carol' Meet the real Jacob Marley Music Rating old-timers’ albums from 2014 SOU presents all-percussion concert Visual Art Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhiits by regional artists Movies Movie review: This ‘Museum’ entry should be closed to the public Listings for Varsity Theatre and Ashland Street Cinemas 'Homesman' plays grit and despair perfectly Movie review: Exiting Middle-earth with a triumphant flourish Movie review: A captivating film about a girl gone ‘Wild’ Food and Drink Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Looking Up: The stars from the North Pole Suzette Martinez Standring: Christmas light reflections Health Watch: Change up your treadmill workout In Good Faith: Fallen angels Marketta Gregory: Advent calendar Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs NEWS NOW Victorious Raiders parade trophy through downtown Ashland ... State police search for pursuit suspect near Hyatt Lake ... Raiders bring it home ... Victorious Raiders parade trophy through downtown Ashland ... State police search for pursuit suspect near Hyatt Lake ... Raiders bring it home ... GUEST OPINION Guest Opinion: Heard the buzz about Bee City USA? Comment By Kristina Lefever DailyTidings.com By Kristina Lefever Posted Dec. 16, 2014 @ 12:01 am By Kristina Lefever Posted Dec. 16, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Social News Every beekeeper will tell you that a successful hive is much greater than the sum of its parts. The same can also be said of every successful city. And Ashland is about to become even greater, because it is recognizing, acknowledging, and supporting one of its smallest, but perhaps one of its most important, parts. Tonight, the Ashland City Council is expected to approve becoming a Bee City USA ®. But this designation by no means applies only to honey bees. In fact, being a Bee City USA may be more even important for our other pollinators, such as butterflies, moths, native bees and bats! The Bee City USA movement began in 2012 in Asheville, N.C. Talent was approved as the second Bee City this past June, and then Carrboro, N.C., was third. Ashland hopes to be the fourth Bee City USA in the country. What does being a Bee City USA mean? At minimum: issue a proclamation, erect signs and hold one celebration annually to educate people about our pollinators. But it really means city leaders recognize the crucial role pollinators play in feeding us, and will work to implement practices to assist the community's efforts in improving the lives of these little creatures. Did you know that one out of three bites of food is the result of pollination? Honey bee pollination alone adds more than $15 billion in value to agricultural crops annually in the U.S. But in some places in the world, humans must pollinate crops, because overuse of pesticides and loss of habitat have resulted in too few pollinators. We need all our pollinators here in the RV, and we want them to flourish. The Rogue Valley has a thriving agriculture, and our Growers Markets are famous. Without our pollinators, we have no farmers. Not only are our pollinators critical to our local food supply, they are local economic stimulators! Both Asheville and Carrboro boast new businesses and tourist related activities associated with their Bee City USA status. Last month, Ashland was proud to host the first annual Oregon Honey Festival. Ashland's incredible North Mountain Park already draws visitors. What else can our valley do to develop our pollinator economy? Many long-time valley residents know that our monarch butterfly population has experienced a huge decline from a decade or two ago. Again, pesticides and loss of habitat are the culprits. Thankfully, recent small plantings of milkweed scattered around the valley may be having a positive impact, as people have reported a slight increase in the number of monarch sightings this year. Unfortunately, some of our native pollinators are not faring so well. The western bumblebee is now rare in Southern Oregon, and Franklin's bumble bee is possibly extinct. Other native bumble bee species have experienced declines in their numbers. Let's work together to save what we still have. Just like every creature, pollinators need habitat, food and water. If every home had at least one native plant in their yard, and if every home and business stopped using chemical pesticides, our pollinators could make huge strides in their recovery. Native plants are generally drought tolerant and better able to withstand the extremes of the seasons, making them easier to care for. And many of them come back every year, reducing the number of plants to buy. The valley has a number of local nurseries that grow native, pollinator friendly plants, and with more demand, more nurseries will grow them, and in greater variety. But be cautious — ask if the plants have been grown, or treated, with neonicotinoids — these systemic pesticides interfere with the bees' ability to navigate, and because it is in the pollen fed to baby bees, subsequent generations are harmed. Pollinator Project Rogue Valley is working to improve the health and well-being of our pollinators and to help other cities become a Bee City USA. Like us on Facebook or send an email to [email protected] to join our community. And visit www.beecityusa.org to find out more. In this time of thanksgiving and celebration, Ashland is celebrating, and being thankful for, our pollinators. To paraphrase another writer — what happens to the least of us, happens to all of us. Kristina Lefever of Ashland is a member of the Hive Steering Committee for Pollinator Project Rogue Valley.   By Kristina Lefever DailyTidings.com By Kristina Lefever Posted Dec. 16, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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