University of Kentucky researchers are evaluating how food availability on farmland impacts bee communities in early spring.
Clare Rittschof is an assistant professor and leader of the new study. She said the goal is to improve pollinator populations by providing nutritious food sources.
“Pollinators aren’t necessarily important in the context of growing corn or soy but those crops pick up large expanses of area,” Rittschof said. “So by working with farmers to make that type of land use more sustainable it might improve pollinator populations that might be useful in pollinating other types of crops.”
The study compares bee populations in plots with traditional cover crops to those with winter weeds. It will also cover how the abundance flowering weeds impact honey bee colony growth and health. Rittschof said the three-year study will collect data next spring. The study is funded in part by a grant from the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research.
