Harvesting seeds from small plots of perennial wildflowers may not only provide producers with a new income source, but also improve soil health and thereby increase the sustainability of agricultural production.
Tag: Wildflowers
The humidity of flowers acts as an invisible attractor for bumblebees
As well as bright colours and subtle scents, flowers possess many invisible ways of attracting their pollinators, and a new study shows that bumblebees may use the humidity of a flower to tell them about the presence of nectar, according to scientists at the Universities of Bristol and Exeter.
Do wildflowers help reduce runoff in roadside soils?
Wildflowers found to absorb runoff just as effectively as turfgrass, among other benefits
Pioneering research reveals gardens are secret powerhouse for pollinators
Home gardens are by far the biggest source of food for pollinating insects, including bees and wasps, in cities and towns, according to new research.
Decline of Bees, Other Pollinators Threatens U.S. Crop Yields
Crop yields for apples, cherries and blueberries across the United States are being reduced by a lack of pollinators, according to Rutgers-led research, the most comprehensive study of its kind to date. Most of the world’s crops depend on honeybees and wild bees for pollination, so declines in both managed and wild bee populations raise concerns about food security, notes the study in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.