A few years ago Bower vine was added to the list for Modesto. We all thought it was too tender for here. We were selling Mandevillea as a tender vine that had to be grown in pots because of the attractive flowers so many of us started selling Bower Vine the same way.

We started to find it actually did go through the winters. It is still tender and can freeze in specially hard winters when it is young. It often goes deciduous in the winter. I became convinced it was a valuable addition to our vine selection after I had one go through two winters in a hanging basket.

It is noted for blooming from April through October with good sized trumpet shaped flowers in either white or pink. It likes the sun and will fill an 8' section of fence.

We carry a good selection this time of year.

These are solitary bees that nest in holes in wood or in nests in the ground. they are smaller than Honey Bees and don't seem to sting. They take the cut foliage or flowers and use them to build their nest

they have become more and more common as the feral or wild honey bee population declines. In a previous post about zucchini squash I described the decline as being from the introduction of mites that attack honey bees and kill entire hives.

We have seen a resurgence of the native wild bee population including both leaf cutter bees and bumble bees.

Chemical control is not easy because they arn't actually eating the foliage. Usually we recoment ignoring the damage. They seem to like roses, bougainvillea, and a few other plants with foliage of similar thicknessw and textrue.

They can be annoying especially when they seem to prefer one plant out of the garden. Usually the damage is minimal and the plants grow out of it easily. Look at it as one of the marvels of nature.

You can read a longer article at
Leaf cutter bee
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http://crawford.tardigrade.net/bugs/BugofMonth23.html