Best management practices to protect bees from pesticides, by Univ. of California IPM

The University of California Statewide IPM Program has developed a list of best management practices to protect bees from pesticides. Their list also provides various links to additional resources. Excerpts from BMP List Identify what species of bees are present at the site and learn the specific ways to protect them. Alkali bees, bumble bees, [...]

Toxicity of Common Lawn, Garden, and Ornamental Pesticides to Bees

Authors Mark Shour Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Adam Thoms Department of Agriculture, Iowa State University Lina Rodriguez-Salamanca Plant and Insect Diagnostic Clinic, Iowa State University Overview This Iowa Extension and Outreach team has pulled together information on various common pesticides, covering insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides. Within each table, they rate  products on their [...]

Woody Plants for Urban Bee Conservation

Authors Bernadette Mach Department of Entomology, The University of Kentucky Daniel Potter Department of Entomology, The University of Kentucky Overview Various groups have published bee-friendly plant lists, but these lists often lack experimental data and rarely emphasize woody plants (flowering trees and shrubs)—a major component of urban landscapes. Dr. Mach and Dr. Potter set out [...]

Protecting and Enhancing Pollinators In Urban Landscapes

Overview Without natural enemies, invasive pests population surge dramatically, this is also a primary reason tree care professionals and property owners use pesticides, to manage invasive pests from Europe and Asia. This publication is designed to provide best management practices for protecting a few valuable plants from invasive pests while minimizing the impact on pollinators […]

Building a Better Monarch Butterfly Waystation

The monarch butterfly is well known for its long distance annual migrations to and from overwintering sites in Mexico, a voyage reaching upwards of 2,000 miles. The journey north may take four or five generations, with the final generation making the long trek home. These long distance flights take a tremendous amount of energy and require […]

Creating Pollinator-Friendly Landscapes

Overview Pollinator-friendly landscapes are becoming more popular as more people become aware of the dangers pollinators face in their everyday settings. The research presented in this article comes from a three-year survey documenting bee visitations and assemblages in trees and shrubs in the Ohio River Valley region. It focuses on woody ornamental plants because of […]

Protecting Bees from Pesticides, by Dr. Kim Stoner

Overview Stoner’s article is a must read for anyone using pesticides at home—especially neonicotinoids. The article dives into the best practices associated with pesticide use in order to protect the bees. Pesticides often pose a threat to other organisms in the area of application, therefore by only using pesticides when absolutely necessary, applying them properly, […]

Bees on Alternative Flowering Plants on Vegetable Farms in Connecticut

Dr. Kimberly Stoners article measured bee attractiveness of alternative flowering plants on vegetable farms. Stoners research has shown that vegetable crops are visited more frequently by wild bees than by honey bees.  The results uncovered that 98 different bee species visited 10 farms over two different growing seasons. Many of the bees collected were found on non-vegetable plants such as cover crops and wildflowers that benefit from bee pollination.

A Citizen’s Guide to Creating Pollinator Habitat in Connecticut

Overview This guide is for those who want to create a pollinator habitat in Connecticut. Dr. Stoner divided the users to four different groups: Beekeeper : supporting the health and productivity of your honey bees. Farmer or orchardist : supporting pollinators of crops to increase productivity. Manager of a large land area (conservation) : to […]