abuzz about pollinators
abuzz about pollinators
It’s Springtime which means you will begin to see pollinators buzzing around our farm. Pollinators are truly a farmer’s friend and so very vital to overall food production. Pollinators include bees, insects, birds and other small insects that move pollen from one plant to another. Pollen is the yellow dust that you see clinging to… Read More »
It’s Springtime which means you will begin to see pollinators buzzing around our farm. Pollinators are truly a farmer’s friend and so very vital to overall food production. Pollinators include bees, insects, birds and other small insects that move pollen from one plant to another. Pollen is the yellow dust that you see clinging to a blossom that bears a plant’s male sex cells and is a vital in the reproductive cycle. This process is called fertilizing which allows the plants to reproduce, flower and bear fruit. Most of our crops require pollination such as apples, peaches, apricots, strawberries, blueberries, corn, squash, cucumbers and many more. Some crops such as melons can be self-pollinating, however still require help from our pollinator friends. The Brassica’s family of plants (cabbage family) do not require pollination as the flower buds before they bloom therefore allowing us to grow these crops in high tunnel environments. Nonetheless, the importance of pollinators on our farm and in your backyard are crucial to ensuring that we can grow healthy, ample produce to feed families.
If you have visited our farm you know that we have our own honey bee hives on our farm. The hives provide a home for the bees that help pollinate our crops. It also provides us with an opportunity to harvest the honey which is available in our farm store. We have hives on each of our farming properties to ensure the success of our crops.
Birds are another important component of crop pollination. Bird spotting is a favorite pastime for guests visiting the farm in the spring, summer and fall. You can view a variety of birds here including bluebirds, bluejays, cardinals, robins, goldfinches, woodpeckers, tufted titmouse, chickadees, cedar waxwing, catbirds and more. When you visit the farm you will see these pollinators fluttering from plant to plant
doing their job of pollination.
We also grow acres of our own flowers in season that include sunflowers, cosmos, and zinnias for cutting which attract beautiful butterfly pollinators to our farm. The flower patches are a great spot to pause and take a photo in summertime and cut your own bouquet to take home as a keepsake.
