Q. I have heard about the loss of great numbers of bees. Is there anything ordinary gardeners can do to help our pollinators?
A. Enormous losses have been suffered by both commercial beekeepers and in native wild bee populations. It is a crisis situation since bees are the unpaid workers who pollinate many of our favorite food crops and our beloved flowers.
The reasons for what is called “colony collapse” are still being researched and effective prevention is not known, but home gardeners can provide help to our bees.
You can provide early blooming flowers to give the bees a guaranteed good start to the season, then continue to provide flowers, herbs and shrubs throughout the summer and fall for the bees.
You can research favorite bee flowers but there are even easier ways to help. Clover, a sometime nemesis of lawn fanciers, is an excellent source of food for the bees. Perhaps allow clover in one part of your lawn, say a less-used area? Clover enriches the soil and it is not as unsightly as some lawn lovers believe and the benefits are great.