SunStar Herbs

06/02/2026

05/27/2026

Drying out after the rain.

05/25/2026

Jujubes are in flower.

05/25/2026

Today in the Calendula

05/24/2026

Long horn bee on calendula.

05/21/2026

Celebra el Día Mundial de las Abejas descubriendo las fascinantes abejas nativas de Nuevo México y encuentra consejos para convertir tu jardín en su refugio: https://pubs.nmsu.edu/bees/

05/20/2026

The honeybee gets the attention. These eight do most of the work.

Native bees pollinate earlier in spring, fly in cooler weather, and visit flowers honeybees skip entirely. Most of them nest in the ground or in hollow stems — not in hives. Most of them can't sting you. And most of them are in your yard right now without you knowing it.

The metallic green one on the coneflower is a sweat bee. The one cutting perfect circles from your rose leaves is a leafcutter. The large one hovering near the deck is a carpenter bee — and the males can't sting at all.

05/20/2026

We’re honored to have been nominated for an Local Hero Award! You can vote for us in the Farm and Ranch Santa Fe and Rio Arriba @ www.ediblenm.com/2026-local-hero-ballot 💚 Polls are open until May 26! Such an honor to be included in this group, many are friends, all winners.

05/19/2026

The "save the bees" campaign is about the wrong bee.

Honeybees aren't disappearing. They're managed livestock — imported from Europe centuries ago for honey and crop pollination. When a colony dies, the beekeeper replaces it.

The bees in crisis are the ones without keepers.

🌿 North America has over four thousand species of native bees — mason bees, mining bees, sweat bees, leafcutter bees, carpenter bees. Most are solitary. Most nest in the ground or in hollow stems. None make honey. None have a beekeeper.

Native bees are significantly more efficient pollinators per individual — they visit more flowers per trip and work in weather that keeps honeybees in the hive.

🐾 What actually helps native bees:

- Plant native flowers — native bees evolved alongside them
- Leave bare soil patches — most native bees nest in the ground
- Leave dead stems standing through spring — many species nest inside them
- Avoid spraying flowering plants during bloom

The bees that need saving live in the soil, in hollow stems, and in old beetle holes. They've been here for millions of years. No hive. No keeper. No marketing campaign 🌿

05/17/2026

Mid morning at the park