www.sare.org publications managing-alternative-pollinators chapter-one-the-business-of-pollination pollination-costs-and-benefits-almonds Pollination Costs and Benefits: Almonds Note: The major honey producing states are shown in yellow. Arrows show the path of some migratory beekeeping operations. For example, beekeepers on the East Coast may move colonies to the Northeast for blueberry and cranberry pollination and a variety of other crops, and to the South to produce honey from citrus. Some beekeepers in the Midwest may […]
www.sare.org publications managing-alternative-pollinators chapter-one-the-business-of-pollination the-case-for-a-diversity-of-bees The Case for a Diversity of Bees The greater the diversity of bees, the better the pollination. Honey bees are often considered the most important crop pollinator due to their sheer numbers. They live in large colonies requiring copious amounts of pollen and nectar for nourishment. Each honey bee colony contains about 30,000 bees, with a range of 10,000 to 60,000 bees, […]
www.sare.org publications managing-alternative-pollinators chapter-one-the-business-of-pollination Chapter One: The Business of Pollination Marla Spivak, PhD, Professor of Entomology, University of Minnesota Eric Mader, Pollinator Outreach Coordinator, the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation Nature is no longer a free commodity when it comes to crop pollination. As we increase crop acreage requiring insect pollination, bees must be mass reared to meet demand. We cannot rely on natural populations of bees […]
www.sare.org publications managing-alternative-pollinators to-our-readers To Our Readers We assume you are like most people we know who are interested in bees and pollination: You are very practical and creative. Adept at learning with your hands, you prefer to be outdoors. You use books to answer questions that arise in the process of getting something done. Indeed, we suspect that many of you […]
www.sare.org publications managing-alternative-pollinators foreword-3 Foreword This book could not have come at a better time. We stand at a crossroads, where honey bee losses and rental rates for pollination are on the rise, research is expanding our knowledge of native bees’ role in crop pollination, and growers are looking for pollination alternatives to improve crop security. Herein lies the heart […]
www.sare.org publications cover-cropping-for-pollinators-and-beneficial-insects resources-10 Resources SARE’s Cover Crops Topic Room This online collection of educational materials was developed out of decades of SARE-funded cover crop research. Attracting Native Pollinators Illustrated with hundreds of color photographs and dozens of specially created illustrations, this book provides rich detail on creating and managing pollinator habitat. The Iowa NRCS Cover Crop Economics Tool This […]
www.sare.org publications cover-cropping-for-pollinators-and-beneficial-insects references-9 References for Cover Cropping for Pollinators and Beneficial Insects Conservation Technology Information Center (CTIC). 2014. Report of the 2013-14 Cover Crops Survey. CTIC and North Central SARE. sare.org/2013-cover-crop-survey. Altieri, M., and H. Wilson. 2010. Restoring Plant Diversity and Soil Health in Napa and Sonoma Vineyards: Scaling Up an Agroecologically Based Pest Management Strategy. Project funded by USDA-SARE. To access, visit sare.org/project-reports and search by […]
www.sare.org publications cover-cropping-for-pollinators-and-beneficial-insects insecticides-and-insect-conservation Insecticides and Insect Conservation Insecticides should not be applied to cover crops where pollinator and beneficial insect conservation is a priority. In most cases it is unnecessary, regardless of your cover crop objectives. Both organic and conventional pesticides can harm pollinators and other beneficial insects. Cover crops are themselves often used to break pest cycles and manage nematodes, and […]
www.sare.org publications cover-cropping-for-pollinators-and-beneficial-insects beyond-cover-crops Beyond Cover Crops Although cover crops can provide significant pollen and nectar resources for bees, they do have constraints. For example, because most cover crop species have a short bloom period, single species cover crops typically offer a feast-or-famine situation for bees. A shortage of food is followed by abundance, followed by another shortage. Under such circumstances wild […]
www.sare.org publications cover-cropping-for-pollinators-and-beneficial-insects limitations-of-cover-crops Limitations of Cover Crops You may be asking yourself, "If cover crops are so great, why doesn’t everyone use them?” While some farmers may not know where to start, perhaps the greater barrier to adoption is that the financial and environmental benefits of cover cropping oftentimes accrue gradually [22, 23, 24], while the startup costs in time and money […]