Master Gardeners Befriend Beneficial Insects

The greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add a useful plant to its culture....Thomas Jefferson

"Trees for Bees", 2016 Pollinator Poster, Credit: Natalya Zahn.

Celebrate 

National Pollinator Week, June 20 - 26, 2016!

For More Information go to U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: https://www.fws.gov/pollinators/

"Attracting beneficial insects to your garden promotes food production and feeds birds and animals" says Bob Roubideaux Reno County Extension Master Gardener.

Master Gardeners Hazel Zink & Bob Roubideaux at the Reno County Master Gardener's booth at Saturday's Farmer's Market. Their booth displayed some simple shelters and other devices to aid and encourage more homeowners to assist in countering the depletion of the natural habit of pollinators, such as installing houses for bats or native bees.

Carol & Ed Berger with a Bamboo Mason Bee House

 What is pollination and what are pollinators? Pollination occurs when pollen is moved within flowers or carried between flowers by pollinating animals such as bees, butterflies, birds, bats, moths, includes our KS wind, & other  animals or insects. Without pollination, our food source would be severely compromised. As the monarch butterfly habit decreases and the bee hive collapse is becoming more of a concern, the U.S. has lost over 50% of its managed honeybee colonies over the past 10 years, Reno County Master Gardeners want to introduce home gardeners to techniques to aid and benefit the common pollinators we have in our gardens. Note: A lack of research has hindered our knowledge about the status of pollinators.  The E.U. has been so concerned that they have invested over $20 million investigating the status of pollinators in Europe.

What can we do here in Kansas? We can use less pesticides and know the better times of the day if using them as a last resort. We can plant more native plants that provide the nectar and larval food for our pollinators such as the plants listed on the poster below. This site provides more information http://www.xerces.org/pollinator-conservation/gardens/.

And finally, the best advice of all...........

Master Gardeners Judy Eckhoff & Miriam Iwashig hand out brochures and other literature available through the Reno County  K-State Research & Extension office or go to their Lawn & Garden site at https://www.ksre.k-state.edu.

Master Gardeners provided: photos by jbcrock, quote by seubanks, written by phughes.