OSU Volunteers Celebrate National Pollinators Week
When Bob and Barb Falconer see a plant with a bee on it at a local nursery, they buy it.
They bring it home to the suburban oasis they’ve created for struggling pollinators. It's about four acres in Hillsboro, where bumble bees, honey bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects continued to work even as the sun set on a recent May evening.
As an OSU Extension Master Gardener and OSU Master Beekeeper, Bob has put his skills to use creating a safe haven for the insects that have been declining in numbers across the nation for decades.
“There are hundreds of species in Oregon we know very little about,” Falconer said. “We only see them when we take time to notice them.”
Leaders of the Pollinator Partnership are hoping more people will notice them during the annual National Pollinator Week June 18 – 24.
The Pollinator Partnership, an organization dedicated to promoting the health of pollinators, created the week in order to honor and spread the word about the benefits and needs of the varied pollinators across the country.
“The idea is to help the bees,” said Falconer, who thinks about what’s best from the entire local ecosystem when he thinks about his property.
Lavender, crimson clover, salmonberry and scorpion weed are just a few of Falconer’s favorite plants. They’re easy to find, grow well in the Willamette Valley – and provide food for the properties many minute residents. Like the honeybee colonies that live in Falconer’s tall painted hives, mason bees in little tubes stacked in small bird-house-like structures, bumble bees in underground nesting homes and other bumble bees in wooden-box houses secured on tree trunks.
The best way to boost pollinator populations is to limit use of herbicides and pesticides in your yards and to plant a variety of flowers and bushes that attract pollinators. This handy list of
25 plants
from the
Oregon Bee Project
are guaranteed to attract pollinators.
On Friday, July 27 we are excited to have OSU Extension pollinator expert, Andony Melathopoulos with us at the Washington County Fair. Andony will bring his Oregon Bee Project exhibits, showcase the Bee Atlas, answer your questions and more. Look for the OSU Extension Service tent leading into the 4-H program exhibits.
To learn more about National Pollinator Week, find events in your area and discover how you can get involved see
online
.
