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When it comes to improving crop yield, don't overlook the small-winged workhorses with a big impact: pollinators. Pollinators add more than $18 billion in revenue to crop production every year.¹
So, while you likely spend more time managing yield-limiting insect pests, managing beneficial insects like honey bees (and other pollinators) to maximize productivity and profit should also be a high priority in your operation.
In this article, you'll find an overview of why pollinators are important to agriculture and how they can improve crop yield. Most importantly, learn how to reap the economic benefits of pollinators in your operation by implementing four basic steps to foster a pollinator-friendly environment.
Globally, research estimates that approximately 75% of flowering plants and 35% of food crops depend on animal pollinators to produce.²
📸: @Calla_RSA via Canva/Featuring an image of a honey bee pollinating canola flowers.
Honey bees are the primary commercial pollinator in the U.S. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Animal Health Literacy division says it best: “Honey bees are like flying dollar bills buzzing over U.S. crops” with bee pollination alone accounting for approximately $15 billion in added crop value.³ Other pollinators include birds, moths, butterflies and other insects.
Over 150 U.S. crops depend on pollination, including almost all fruit and grain crops. Almonds, non-citrus fruits, berries, melons and squash are some of the major crops pollinated by honey bees and other pollinators.
All told, pollinators' ecological service is valued at $200 billion each year according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. This value includes their critical role in generating increased yields (and subsequently, increased profits) from agricultural lands.⁴
Research shows that insect pollination can improve average crop yield by up to 71% depending on the crop. Pollinators can also improve quality in most crops. For example, oilseed rape pollinated by insects has shown higher oil and lower chlorophyll levels.⁵
In another testament to the agricultural value of pollinators, alfalfa seed growers construct nests for alkali bees near their operations. Through pollination, each female alkali bee can produce up to one-third pound of seed in her short lifetime (these bees live on average 15 to 38 days in the summer and 150 to 200 days in the winter).
Additionally, canola crops have shown increased seed production and quality as a result of insect pollination, with pollination affecting a myriad of functional characteristics in canola, from flower timing and plant size to seed packaging and root biomass.⁶
📸: @dabjola via Canva/Featuring an image of a canola field, a crop that shows significant benefits from pollinator activity.
University of Texas, Austin research has found that bees are responsible for approximately 66% of pollination in cotton fields, but all told, the work of butterflies and flies as pollinators adds about $120 million per year of extra cash for Texas cotton growers.⁷
Furthermore, bee-pollinated fruits are typically heavier, have fewer malformations, reach higher commercial grades and have improved shelf life, reducing costly fruit loss.
Put those busy bees to work in your operation by implementing these four practices to make the most of pollinators:
Growers have started farming bees as well as crops to ensure a healthy population of pollinators are readily available to pollinate their cash crops. Western honey bees are the most popular pollinator employed by farmers who set up or rent hives to put on their land.
Honey doesn’t fly to the bee, as the saying goes, and pollinators won’t think of your cropland as a usable environment unless you make a concerted effort to attract them. Optimize any unused land you have by growing flowers and plants (e.g., milkweed) that attract pollinators.
Folks like Shawn O’Conner, a Nebraska soybean grower, model the benefits of implementing pollinator habitats. O'Conner's pollinator protection work, in partnership with the USDA's Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), shows how you can cultivate a low-maintenance pollinator habitat in your operation.
Following safe pesticide protocols can help reduce instances of unintentionally wiping out pollinators with an insecticide application meant to target pest insects.
📸: BASF employee/Featuring planting of cover crops in cereal rye.
You may be familiar with or already use winter cover cropping to maintain soil health and reduce erosion, but cover cropping can provide benefits far beyond soil health.
Planting flowering cover crops like clover, buckwheat or sunflowers can have high pollinator value, providing habitat, nectar and pollen resources. The USDA’s Cover Crop Chart is a helpful resource that covers (no pun intended) details on 70 cover crop species to help you understand their respective growth cycles, pollination characteristics and more.
Selecting a cover crop with bloom times that are compatible with your production system and attractive to pollinators is key.
Financial incentives are available for implementing pollinator-friendly environments in your operation. Farm Bill programs like the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) are aimed at helping you create conservation improvements to benefit pollinators, which will in turn increase the productivity of your crops. Working with NRCS can help you create customized conservation practices and pollinator habitats that are a good fit for your land and crop needs.
The following programs provide financial assistance for implementation costs:
If you’re ready to make your operation a land of milk and honey (honey bees, that is), you need to know which programs could benefit you, your crop yield and your pollinators. Experts are available to help you make your decisions. Reach out to your seed retailer, a nearby extension office agent, or your regional BASF representative for more info.
📸: @Pixabay via Canva/Featuring an extreme close up of a bee pollinating a sunflower.
Learn more about cover cropping:
Always read and follow label directions. Sefina, Inscalis, and Grow Smart are registered trademarks of BASF. Copyright 2024 BASF Corporation. All rights reserved.
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