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Most Recent Ag News Article
October 30, 2024 - Pollinators in Winter
When the snow starts to fly.
Pollinators are abuzz with popularity these days. Promoting habitat for these creatures is catching on, leaving the vision of spotless gardens with clean lines and trimmed back flora a vision of the past.
While we are thinking of ways to tidy up the habitat that we have curated for these hard workers, it is important to remember that they are still with us through the cold season and that disturbing their nesting sites could hinder their survival.
Solitary ground nesting bees, for example, may be right under our noses. Their nest entrances are rather ordinary, similar to an ant nest without a dirt mound, and the bees work determinedly to supply these locations with pollen and nectar for the next generation.
When the temperature starts to drop, solitary bees and their pollinating cohorts are working hard to secure their lodgings for the winter. Early frosts will decrease food availability by taking care of most flowers.
Adaptations to survive through winter include young bumblebee queens storing nectar and building body fat prior to finding a suitable location to hibernate.
Honeybees cluster around their queen when temperatures begin to drop and provide heat by shivering. Consuming stored honey assists in keeping energy up for this shift work.
In areas where winter months are not extremely harsh, some species of moth and butterflies have developed the ability to remain active in conditions below zero degrees Celsius. These species, such as the Winter Moth, are able to produce an anti-freezing agent which inhibits the formation of ice crystals in their blood.
While pollinators have developed tactics that allow them to survive through the winter, we can lend a hand to better their chances of survival.
In the “Think about nesting as you prepare for winter” article from the Xerces Society, Hillary Sardinas writes “A consequence of mulching that many of us fail to think of: we are likely inhibiting the ability of ground-nesting bees to initiate their nests because mulch covers the patches of soil that are potential nest sites.”
While mulching has its benefits, providing shelter and protection to the soil and microorganisms, fungi and bacteria within, and feeding root zones with the compost that results, layers of heavy mulching amendments can deter ground nesters from gaining access to the soil.
Trying lighter weight mulches will “Help suppress weeds but then allow bees to get to digging once the weather improves.”
Alternatives to mulches include hand weeding between plants or seeding the open soil between perennial plants with locally-sourced native wildflower seeds (being careful when purchasing as products may contain weed seeds). “The seeds germinate and compete with weeds, but leave room at their bases for bee nests.”
Leaving the garden area slightly unkempt may not initially put one at ease, but is a wonderful way to provide necessary overwintering sites for pollinators and other beneficial insects. Over time, witnessing the beauty that follows with a more productive habitat may alter ideas of what ‘beauty or ‘functional’ looks like.
In an article titled “Pollinating new ideas” from the University of Minnesota Extension program, extension educator Sam Bauer says, “It is possible to strike a balance between aesthetics and ecology.”
Elderberry, raspberry, sumac and annual sunflower stems provide worthy nesting sites for bees. In his booklet “How to Make a Pollinator Garden,” Clement Kent warns that “Removing these stems in the fall is fatal for the bees that may be nesting in them. Other butterflies and bees overwinter under loose bark and dead leaves (especially bumblebee queens), so if you choose to tidy these up, be aware that you may be removing next season’s generation of pollinators.”
If detrimental insects have been an issue, these practices may not apply as it would be best to try and diminish their overwintering sites.
Start small and work toward finding a balance between encouraging beneficial insects (that could eventually reach population numbers that would assist in keeping damaging insects at bay) and maintaining a productive site that you are proud of.