The next Pollinator School workshop, presented by the Mahoning County office of CFAES’s outreach arm, OSU Extension, runs from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 16, in Canfield in northeast Ohio. The program’s title is “Habitats.” It’s about seeing, understanding and improving where pollinators live and feed. Registration is $10. Learn more. (Photo: Getty Images.)
pollination
Bee Culture editor to speak Wednesday
The 2018 webinar series by CFAES’s Bee Lab continues at 9 a.m. Wednesday, June 20, with a talk called “Ethics in Beekeeping.” Speaking will be Kim Flottum, the editor of Medina-based Bee Culture magazine and the author of The Backyard Beekeeper and Better Beekeeping, among others.
It’s free to watch; use the “Guest Login” at 8:55 a.m.
Learn more. (Photo: iStock.)
Where do bees do what they do?
CFAES scientist Reed Johnson presents “Where Are Honey Bees Foraging in Ohio?” from 9-10 a.m. May 16 as part of a webinar series hosted by the college’s Bee Lab. Watching the webinar is free; use the “Guest Login” at 8:55 a.m. Gather more information (scroll down). (Photo: iStock.)
Flower-wise, bees favor farm over city
Hungry honey bees appear to favor flowers in agricultural areas over those in neighboring urban areas, says a study done by scientists with CFAES.
The discovery, the scientists said, has implications for urban beekeepers and challenges assumptions that farmland and honey bees are incompatible.
Gather more details. (Photo: Honey bee on goldenrod, iStock.)
The bad, the good of honey bees and field crops
Honey bees are negatively impacted by the insecticide-coated seeds of some field crops, yet they also seem to benefit from the presence of other field crops near their hives, according to new research by CFAES scientists. Read the story.
A handy new guide to the bees in your garden
Ohio’s bees are more than honey bees. They’re bumble bees (like this one), carpenter bees, cuckoo bees and others, and you can identify more than a dozen of them — types you’re likely to see in your garden — using a new pocket card from CFAES. (Photo: David Cappaert, Bugwood.org.)
Bees exposed to ‘wide, concerning range of pesticides’: Study
Honey bees living next to corn and soybean fields are “exposed to a surprisingly wide and concerning range of pesticides,” according to a May 31 Newsweek story about research involving CFAES insect scientist Elizabeth Long, who was at Purdue University at the time of the study. There’s a video interview, too, with the story.
Beans and bees
“Dozens of species of pollinators have been found in soybean fields around the country. This project is trying to get a handle on what’s out there in Ohio fields.” Here’s how you can help.
There’s a buzz in the city. And you can help it
Michigan State University Extension has just updated Protecting and Enhancing Pollinators in Urban Landscapes for the US North Central Region (30 pp.), which you can download as a free PDF Researcher seeking soybean fields for pollinator study
Although soybean crops are self-pollinating, some species of bee and fly pollinators can enhance soybean yields, says a CFAES researcher.
The question is, what pollinator insects are active in Ohio soybean crops?
That’s what Kelley Tilmon, a field crop entomologist with OSU Extension and OARDC, wants to know. OSU Extension and OARDC are the outreach and research arms of the college, respectively.
Tilmon is conducting a study on the issue and is seeking conventional or organic soybean growers willing to allow insect sampling equipment to be placed in their fields to identify what pollinator insects are flourishing there. Continue reading Researcher seeking soybean fields for pollinator study