Gardening smartly for bees and other pollinators
Dr. Ashley Bennett
Michigan State University
Gardening smartly for bees and other pollinators
Dr. Ashley Bennett
Michigan State University
Why is bee conservation important?
 Bees pollinate 80% of flowering plants
o Native plants
o Food crops
Collected Pollen
Pennsylvania Dept. of Agriculture
U. S. grows 100 crops dependent on pollination
 Value in 2000 was $20 billion
with bees
without bees
Why is bee conservation important?
 Supports native plant communities
 Food for wildlife
Why is bee conservation important?
 Aesthetic beauty
 Recreational value
 Interest to our gardens!
Photo: British Columbia, Ministry of Agriculture
Osimia lingnaria: pollinates fruit crops
Photo by: Richard Orr
Peponapis sp. : pollinates cucurbits
Over 20,000 species of bees in the world, 4,000 in N. A.,
and nearly 400 species recorded in Michigan.
Honey bees
• Most important bee
worldwide.
• First brought by European
settlers in 1600s for honey
and wax production.
• Feral colonies once
abundant.
• Provides crop pollination
worth $14.6 billion in US
annually.
Carpenter Bee
Bumble Bee
Photo by: Richard Orr
Squash Bee
Pennsylvania Dept. of Agriculture
Long-horn bee
Native Bees - Apidae
Common bumble bee species
differentiated by the amount of yellow abdominal hair
Bombus citrinus
abdomen all black
Bombus griseocollis
1st segment all yellow,
2nd segment partial yellow
Bombus impatiens
first segment yellow
Bombus bimaculatus
1st segment all yellow,
2nd segment partial yellow
Bombus vagans
1st & 2nd segments
all yellow
Bombus fervidus
all but the last
segment yellow
USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Leaf cutter bee
USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Leaf cutter bee
USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Anthidium
Photo by: John Ascher
Leaf cutter bee
Native Bees - Megachilidae
Sheryl Pollock
Sweat Bee
Lynette Schimming
Sweat Bee
Green Bee
Green Bee
Native Bees - Halictidae
Photo by: Lynette Schimming
Photo by: John Ascher
USDA Bee Biology Lab, Logan Utah
Photo by: Micheal Veit
Native Bees – Colletidae & Andrenidae
Other Pollinators
1. Flies – Syrphids
2. Beetles – Soldier Beetle
3. Wasps – Specids, Vespids
4. Butterflies
5. Birds
How can you attract bees?
Flowers
1.Diversity of flowers
 Color: purples, pinks, yellows
 Shapes: open and tubular
 Different nectar and pollen
2.Season long flowering
 Spring, summer, fall
 Food throughout seasons
Spring
Summer
Fall
Types of bees
1. Short tongue
 Sweat bee
 Open flowers
2. Long tongue
 Bumble bee
 Tubular flowers
Native Pollinators
Open Flower
Tubular Flower
Why use native plants?
1. Adapted to soils & climate
2. Evolved with native bees
3. Once established, require little water or fertilizer
4. Few pest & disease problems: limit chemical use
White fringed
prairie orchid
Indian Paintbrush
Queen of the Prairie
Prairie Smoke
Native plants
Native plants - Spring
Foxglove
Spiderwort
Wild Strawberry
Trout lily
Golden Alexander
Cream Baptisia
Prairie phlox
Native plants - Summer
Nodding Onion
Pale Coneflower
Monarda
Slender Mt. mint
Purple prairie clover
Butterfly weed
Native plants - Summer
Gray headed coneflower
Whorled Milkweed
Compass Plant
Native plants – Fall
Stiff Goldenrod
Closed Gentain
Aromatic aster
Indian grass
Rough blazing star
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/ki
ds/animals-pets-kids/bugs-kids/butterflieskids/
Resources
1. Bee Basics: An introduction to our native bees
 A USDA Forest Service and Pollinator Partnership Publication, 2011
2. Pollinator conservation handbook
 The Xerces Society, 2003
3. Nests for native bees, online

http://www.xerces.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/nests_for_native_bees_fact_sheet_xerces_society.pdf
4. Native plants for the home landscape
 K. Nowakowski, 2004, University of Illinois extension
5. Native plants of Michigan, online
 http://nativeplants.msu.edu/
6. Pollinator Partnership, online
 http://www.pollinator.org/guides.htm
7. MSU demonstration gardens