Pollinator Partnership Blog Your spot for cutting edge pollinator projects and news!

  • Minute with Maddie: Pollinator Spiced Latte Recipe

    Did you know pollinators are responsible for 1⁄3 bites of food? Learn more about how pollinators make your seasonal coffee runs possible! Both coffee beans and pumpkins are pollinated by insects. Coffee beans are the seeds of the tree’s fruits, called coffee cherries. Coffee beans don’t always require insect-pollination as they are a self-pollinated crop; however, studies show that coffee beans are bigger and more plentiful when pollinators are around. On the other hand, pumpkins need bees to successfully reproduce. Honey bees, bumble bees, squash bees, and other solitary bees are frequent visitors to the pumpkin patch, making this latte extra autumnal and extra tasty!

  • Growing the Future!

    Growing the future! That phrase can encompass a multitude of meanings, yet, I hope your mind traveled to envisions of positivity! At Mason State Nursery, we are growing more than just plants here, we are growing relationships with other like-minded individuals that want to have a positive impact, we are growing awareness on why it is important to take care of our pollinators and their world, and we are growing our conservation efforts.

  • Mite-A-Thon is Mighty and Back for 2021!

    Varroa destructor, commonly known as the varroa mite, and the viruses it vectors is the most significant driver of honey bee colony mortality today. Realizing the magnitude of this issue four years ago, Pollinator Partnership, in collaboration with leading organizations in the field of honey bee health, launched the Mite-A-Thon. This international effort occurs twice a year to help beekeepers gain knowledge of the level of mite infestation that their hives are carrying both at the beginning of the season and just before the overwintering season begins.

  • Finding Flavor and Diversity While Staying Close to Home

    When we bottle a jar of honey, it captures a very specific moment and flavor in time that details what was blooming on and around the farm. Beyond just the plants, the flavor characteristics can also tell us about the soil quality, microclimate, water, sun, and seasonal profile – all bottled up into our farm’s unique terroir.

  • Keep Going, Keep Growing: Fun Activities for Parents and Kids!

    Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids while practicing safe social distancing? Here are ten fun pollinator-themed ideas suggested by our wonderful Pollinator Partnership staff!

  • Nature Inspired Design: Biomimicry and Monarchs

    Humans have been inspired by nature for centuries. While that inspiration is often manifested through visual or written works of art, the natural world also has much to teach us about technological innovation. Many of the problems we face today have already been solved by nature.

  • Behind the Seeds

    I work with all parts of the flowers from the roots all the way to the showiest parts we often gaze at and think of when we hear their names… Foxglove, Wild Bergamot, Meadowmint, Asters, and Liatris to name some. A smaller, more intimate part of the flower in today’s focus is the seed, and I'm here to tell you that there’s a world of beautiful seeds out there and some are so characteristic that they make you enjoy them just as much as the bloom!

  • Pollinators and People: Building Connections for Improved Conservation

    By now, we all know that pollinators are facing several threats, from habitat loss and increased chemical use to parasites and climate change. There have been numerous studies showing population declines and potential consequences of large-scale pollinator loss with one conclusion being repeatedly drawn: We know enough to act now. So why have the masses not become more involved? One simple answer to that question is we might not know the masses well enough. To further pollinator conservation efforts, we need to research people themselves.

  • The Business of Native Plants

    Our pollinator garden has become a hit attraction. We use it to demonstrate how many bugs you can attract when you plant natives. Although it is relatively new here at Carolina Native Nursery, it reflects what we emphasize now verses some of our ideals when we first opened years ago.

  • Do Bees Make Better Wine?

    When the bees first came to Husch the scene was a little apocalyptic. Our friend Patrick had asked if he could leave “a few” bee boxes at Husch for the summer. Why not?, we agreed. But the next morning when Zac arrived at the vineyard the sky was black and 40 boxes (hives) of bees were stationed right next to the winery.

  • Duffy’s Hope Youth Garden is Bee Friendly Farming certified!

    As part of the Delaware Pollinator Protection Plan grant, Thalia Pappas and David Clarke visited the Duffy’s Hope Youth Garden to document what pollinators were attracted to the numerous species of flowers and vegetables grown in this urban garden using David’s photography skills.

  • Introduction to International Pollinators Initiative

    Through the years, there have been many challenges related to the negative impacts of agriculture on the environment. Today one of the main challenges is to protect pollinators from the threats that they are facing, which range from extensive monocultures and intensive agriculture to climate change and pollution. Since early 2000, FAO has been working on project and policy guidance to help countries on the conservation and sustainable use of pollinators through the International Pollinators Initiative.

  • The Butterfly and Your Bottom Line

    Nearly every business, be it in a skyscraper, corporate campus or corner building, has (or should have) some greenspace where employees can gather. It might be a courtyard or a rooftop or a plaza surrounded by planters. The simple step of putting pollinator-friendly plants – milkweed, sunflowers, coneflowers, for instance -- in these areas automatically brings butterflies, hummingbirds and bees along to do their thing.

  • How Herb Pharm Protects Pollinators

    Having seen how climate change, disease and widespread use of herbicides has devastated the habitats of pollinators, we have stepped up our efforts to protect them — and the planet — in recent years. Though we’ve always been committed to doing right from the soil up, we also know we’re facing an insect apocalypse with unprecedented numbers on the brink of extinction.

  • Learning How to Identify Bees!

    Given that most of us only know of the existence of a handful of bees (mostly honey bees and various bumble bees) it’s often staggering when people learn that there are actually over 20,000 species currently known across the world (with many yet to be discovered)! Clearly with the number of species in the tens of thousands, it stands to reason that there is a wonderful world of diversity within this group. These bees come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors, and if you take a little bit of time to observe a patch of flowers, you can begin to really appreciate this small window into the diversity of the insect world.

  • A Magic Wand for Sustainable Improvements? The Tax Cut and Jobs Act as a Conservation Support

    At the 2018 Conservation Conference, Laurie Davies Adams, President and CEO Emeritus of the Pollinator Partnership and WHC Board Member presented a look at the new Tax Act and how it can correlate with conservation activities. The following is Laurie’s narrative of her presentation.

These blog posts are opinions expressed by the author. If you have any comments, please direct them to info@pollinator.org.

From the Archive

Explore past blog posts from Pollinator Partnership staff and featured guest authors below:

Creating Urban Pollinator Hot Spots by Zackary Litalien, Pollinator Partnership

Insight Citizen Science by Dr. Cameron Cartiere, Co-founder of Border Free Bees

The Buzz On Bees: True Or False by Pamela Ruch, Home Garden Seed Association

How To Pass Weed Inspection by Benjamin Vogt, Monarch Gardens

Farmers Can Bee Friends Too by Tess Wynn, Pollinator Partnership

Where Do Pollinators Go in the Winter? by Anthony Colangelo, Pollinator Partnership

No Fear of Stings! by Anthony Colangelo, Pollinator Partnership

Making the Case for Pollinators & Pollinator Conservation on Southern Vancouver Island & the Gulf Islands By Jennifer A. Lotz, Pollinator Partnership Canada

Pollinator Partnership Pollinator Steward Certification By Lora Morandin, Pollinator Partnership

A Place to Call Home Guest Blog by Paige Embry

Caribbean Bee Rescue Campaign By Tom Van Arsdall, Pollinator Partnership

2017 Mite-A-Thon Recap By Isaac Lisle, Pollinator Partnership

Monarchs: Where are they now? By Kathleen Law, Pollinator Partnership (Canada)

Land Trusts Can Help Protect Monarchs and Other Pollinators By Val Dolcini, Pollinator Partnership