[Pollinator] Making Almond Orchards Better for Bees

[Matthew Shepherd]

The following article about miles of new pollinator hedgerows being planted
in California was published on the Xerces Society blog yesterday. It looks
better on the blog—you can see all the photos. J Enjoy!



Matthew





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http://xerces.org/2017/06/21/making-almond-orchards-better-for-bees/



*Making Almond Orchards Better for Bees*

*By Hillary Sardiñas, Bee Better Certified Coordinator*



Almonds rely on bees for pollination. The crunchy, highly nutritious nuts
are the earliest flowering crop in California’s Central Valley,
transforming bare fields into a facsimile of a winter wonderland, with
white blossoms coating the branches and the ground.



To meet the pollination demands of these billions of blooms, farmers import
millions of honey bees: Nearly 90% of all the honey bee colonies in the US,
and more from around the world, journey to California every February.



Yet honey bees are facing numerous threats that cause beekeepers to
routinely lose over 30% of their hives annually.



Fortunately, flower-rich habitat can help support ailing honey bee
populations by providing additional nutrition. Most almonds are grown in a
monoculture, leaving little for bees to forage on before or after bloom.
When farmers provide habitat within and around orchards, bees have a buffet
of options that keep them healthy during almond pollination and until they
are moved to the next crop that requires their services.



There are numerous habitat types capable of supporting pollinators without
impacting crop production. Hedgerows of flowering native shrubs provide
excellent bee habitat around farm perimeters, and cover crops planted
between tree rows bring flowers into the heart of the orchards. This means
bees gain the resources they need and supply pollination services to crops
without farmers having to give up any cropland, a true win-win.





*Habitat to Help Bees*



In Chowchilla, deep in the heart of the California Central Valley,
pollinator habitat is taking root. Harris Family Farm, which supplies all
of the almonds in Häagen-Dazs ice creams, has been planting miles of
flowering hedgerows
<http://www.nestleusa.com/media/pressreleases/haagen-dazs-helps-bees-thrive-with-pollinator-habitats>—6.5
miles, to be exact.



The goal of this impressive hedgerow project is to provide habitat for both
honey bees and native bees—who are also excellent almond pollinators in
their own right—within and around the almond orchards.



Häagen-Dazs has been funding research in support of bees
<http://www.haagendazs.us./bees> and pollinators for nearly a decade, and
identified almonds as a key crop they could transform into a sustainably
sourced ingredient that directly supports pollinators. More than two years
ago, they brought in pollinator conservation experts from the Xerces
Society to help take the program from an idea to reality. Now, with the
help of Xerces, they’ve installed one of the largest privately funded
pollinator habitats on a supply farm.



In addition to hedgerows, Häagen-Dazs is working with Harris Family Farms
to plant a flowering understory between their rows of almond trees,
extending habitat deep into the orchards and making them more hospitable to
bees. They have also assessed their pesticide use and are adopting
pesticide mitigation strategies in order to protect pollinators from
exposure to high risk pesticides, which helps the farm meet the
requirements of the Production Standards of Bee Better Certified™, the
newly launched farm and food certification program.



This work demonstrates the dedication of Häagen-Dazs and the Harris family
to this critical issue and place both at the forefront of the sustainable
sourcing movement. To reinforce this, Harris Family Farms is planning to
apply for Bee Better certification this fall. The Häagen-Dazs ice creams
flavors in which their almonds are used can then proudly carry the Bee
Better Certified seal into stores around the country, one of the first
brands to do so.



Almonds are just the first step. Approximately 40% of Häagen-Dazs products
contain insect-pollinated ingredients, from chocolate and coffee to mango
and strawberry. The company is continuing to work with Xerces to identify
additional ingredients where they can take action to promote Bee Better
practices.



Any farm can be part of the Bee Better Certified program. Large or small,
organic or conventional, every farm can meet the requirements and become
certified. For more information, check out the information on the Bee
Better Certified <http://beebettercertified.org/> website.
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