STRAWBERRY DAYS
JOURNAL
Strawberries are
BIGGER with
BEES around!
1
HELP THE
BEES!
We hope you enjoy your
Strawberry Days.
Thank you very much for taking part.
Please keep a journal of your experiences and note how good your
strawberries are. This can be done online at www.limericksbuzzing.ie
or in this Journal.
For those who prefer writing by hand in their Journal, either copy the information to the
online form or post the Journal before the end of July, to
Veronica Santorum,
Limerick’s Buzzing,
Lower Main Street,
Kilfinane,
Co. Limerick
The online form can be used to submit information at any time, daily, weekly, monthly
or at the end.
We need to have all your information by the end of July to analyse the data and report
back on the findings to you.
We hope that you enjoy this new collaboration, your gardening and your strawberries
and the pleasure of doing something positive to help nature and advance science.
Thank you
2
Strawberry Days 2015 Journal
This Journal belongs to
Address
EmailTelephone number
If you are taking part in Strawberry Days on your own, please tell us about yourself.
I am male female
I am aged under 16 16-30 31-45 46-60 61+
If you are taking part in Strawberry Days as a group, please tell us about your group
Age
Number of females
Number of males
under 16 16-30
31-45
46-60
61+
Why did you join Strawberry Days?
Did you attend a Strawberry Days workshop or see a demonstration?
Please tell us about the strawberries you are growing (tick the box that applies)
Elsanta strawberries provided by the Limericks Buzzing Project
Other. If other, please tell us as much as you can about them below
Variety
Pot or Ground
Pot size (litres) Compost
3
Information about where your strawberries are being grown
Latitude _______________
Longitude __________________
Is the location (tick if yes)
Urban (in a town or city centre)?
Suburban (on outskirts of a town or city)?
Rural (in or beside open country or farmland)?
What are the surroundings of the pots (within 3 paces) – place an X along the scale
below to show whether the pots are surrounded by soil and vegetation or are in a more
built environment.
100% Soft:
plants and soil
50% soft:
50% hard
100% Hard:
walls and pavements
What size is the garden, allotment, field, community area etc.?
smaller than a tennis court, less than half an acre
approximately tennis court sized or half an acre
larger than a tennis court, an acre or larger
What food is there for bees?
Tick all those that are present at different times of the year.
Spring flowers e.g. daffodils, bluebells
Fruit blossom e.g. apple trees, fruit bushes
Flower beds
‘Weeds’ in the lawn
Shrubs and flowers in the hedge
Herb garden
Vegetable garden
Other
4
What shelter is there for bees?
Tick all that are present.
Dry exposed earth in a sunny and sheltered spot1
Stone walls with crevices in a sunny and sheltered spot1
Stone walls with crevices in a shady and sheltered spot2
Heaps of stones or logs2
Short dry lawn1
Old tree or dead timber with holes1
Dry, hollow stems1
Long grass2
Insect hotel in a sunny and sheltered spot1
Other:
1 = used by solitary bees and 2 = used by bumblebees
CHEMICAL USE IN AND AROUND MY GARDEN
Please tell us as much as you can about the use of pesticides or herbicides in and
around the area where you are growing the strawberries. Tick all that apply.
This year
Last year Never
Don’t know
Weedkiller was used
Pesticide was used
Comments on chemical use
5
Observations and Experiences during Strawberry Days
By keeping a diary of how you are getting on, you will have a record for yourself and
help us interpret the results and improve on the project. Use these pages throughout
the project and note how you are getting on, the insects you see pollinating your
strawberry flowers and the pests eating the strawberries. Record your highlights,
challenges, triumphs, the effects of the weather. If you miss a day, don’t worry.
Date
6
My notes
Date
My notes
7
Strawberry Scores
Pot 1: Date first flower opened
Circle the strawberry’s scores
Date picked
Strawberry
Weight (g)
Size
Grade 1
1
Looks
Taste
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
2
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
3
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
4
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
5
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
6
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
7
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
8
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
9
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
10
Not Grade 1
Grade 1
Blue
Barry
Not Grade 1
Date picked
Red
Bob
Date net went on
Grade 1
Not Grade 1
Date net came off
8
Strawberry Scores (continued)
Pot 2: Date first flower opened
Circle the strawberry’s scores
Date picked
Strawberry
Weight (g)
Size
Grade 1
1
Looks
Taste
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
1st
2nd
3rd
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
2
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
3
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
4
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
5
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
6
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
7
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
8
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
9
Not Grade 1
Strawberry
Grade 1
10
Not Grade 1
Grade 1
Blue
Barry
Not Grade 1
Date picked
Red
Bob
Date net went on
Grade 1
Not Grade 1
Date net came off
9
Strawberry Days have nearly come to an end.
It’s time to reflect on the experience.
Circle the face that best describes how you feel
after growing and recording your strawberries.
I would describe my experience of the Strawberry Days Project as;
Please circle up to 6 words
Interesting
Theoretical
Irrelevant
Never-ending
Basic
Fascinating
Boring
Confusing
Fun
Clear
Easy
Realistic
Practical
Exciting
Innovative
Satisfying
Enjoyable
Useful
Balanced
Annoying
Tiring
Challenging
Well-explained Time-consuming
Please tell us if you
> felt confident carrying out the project. Yes No
Why?
> found it easy to enter the data into the project website. Yes No
Why?
> felt you could get help if you needed during the project. Yes No
Why?
What did you most enjoy or like about Strawberry Days?
What worked?
What can we do better?
What did you learn?
What new ideas did you get?
Have you questions and suggestions for future investigations?
10
I feel I have gained.... (tick the boxes in the table that apply)
knowledge about
pollination a little
some
a lot
some a lot
some a lot
some
a lot
other knowledge gained
skills in
observation and reporting a little
other skills gained
appreciation of
how science applies to everyday life a little
I also have increased appreciation of
ideas for
how you might improve
the local environment a little
Ideas I have
Make sure to send this information in to us by the end of July. It is
very important and valuable to the project and bee conservation and represents a lot of
your time and effort. Please post your Journal to Limerick’s Buzzing, Lower Main St.,
Kilfinane, Co. Limerick or submit the information online at www.limericksbuzzing.ie
Please tick here, if you are posting us your Journal and
would like it to be returned to you.
Please let us know the best way to keep you informed about the
findings and outcomes of Strawberry Days 2015. Tick all that apply
Please email me findings
Please post me a report
Please let me know when there are public talks
and events that are communicating the results
I no longer want to receive information about this project
THANK YOU. Your participation and contribution is very much appreciated.
11
Design by Treetop Studio
STRAWBERRY DAYS IS A LIMERICK’S BUZZING INITIATIVE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
This citizen science pollination project has received funding from the SFI Discover Programme