Andony Melathopoulos, pollinator health Extension specialist, joins Scott Reed to talk about the statewide Oregon Bee Project initiative. The diversity of the Pacific Northwest’s pollinator species may be unrivaled in the U.S. Led by OSU Extension, Oregon Department of Agriculture and Oregon Department of Forestry, the initiative takes a comprehensive look at the state’s bee population.
As Scott points out, pollinator health is the responsibility of all of us. Tell us what you are doing for pollinator health by commenting on the blog.
Note: The defective “Captcha” security feature has been removed from the blog, so it is much easier to comment/reply!
Emphasizing a broad range of species that can be used in riparian restoration projects. I would be interested in getting an idea of the tradeoffs between Himalayan blackberry and diverse riparian stands in terms of pollinators. Also, remember that not all pollinators are bees!
I am so glad to hear of your restoration work! Most bees are oligolectic and broad range of species use blackberry. Washington State passed legislation to investigate the feasibility of replacing blackberry with native species with equal or better value to bees. But I have not seen any protocols for replacing blackberry with native pollinator plants, either on paper or in practice. Is this something you have experience with?
I don’t use pesticides or herbicides in my garden. I also plant flowering natives and nativars among my “exotic” ornamental plants to provide food for a wide range of pollinators.
Thank you Andony for all your work! Bees are essential to the Oregon economy and our survival as humans. This is important work!
Thanks Kris.
Thanks for all you are doing, Andony, for the pollinators of Oregon, AND, thank you for the OSU Extension Master Naturalist shout-out! Thank you OSU Extension for featuring this terrific program!
Thanks Jason. Master Naturalists rock!
Planting pollinator-friendly plants that bloom for a long season — including winter — to give bees food year round. Also, no pesticides in the garden.
Thank you Andony! I’ve started to highlight pollinator value when I talk about native plants on my blog for small woodland owners: http://blogs.oregonstate.edu/treetopics/?tag=pollinators
At home, I was planning to convert a raised bed area that has tested too high in lead content to grow veggies to flowering plants such as lavender. Do you think there would be any harm to bees that would forage on these plants from the lead in the soil?
Thanks Amy. Those shrubs on your blog are terrific for pollinators. I know ODF is keen to work with us on resources for woodlot owners who want to help pollinators – in fact we are jointly working on a postcard that shows where bees are in forest habitats. Let’s connect at some point.
Your raise a great question and I am not sure what the answer is. I know my colleague in Kentucky has been working with establishing pollinator habitat in coal mining reclamation sites. She might be a good resource to ask this question. Here is a link to one of their extension publications. https://www.fs.fed.us/nrs/pubs/jrnl/2017/nrs_2017_horn_001.pdf
I loved learning about the diversity of bees and pollinators in Oregon. We have several hummingbird-friendly plants in our yard, but now I will be on the lookout for other pollinators, too.
My neighbor set up hives a few years ago. My garden, on the edge of the desert was beginning to bloom, including the current bush, when she brought home the first hive. Soon, I was surrounded by hundreds of bees who were delighted to find some food! The bees add a happy hum to all my gardening tasks throughout the season.