Pollinator Wings over Agriculture: Bee Friendly Farming and Seeds for Bees®

The PAm Wildflower Mix pictured here is designed to increase the density, diversity and duration of blooming plants available for foraging bees. Different flowers bloom at different times of the year providing extended nutritional benefits for pollinators. Seeds for Bees cover crop and wildflower seed mixes can help farmers and growers become Bee Friendly Certified!

​Bee Friendly Farming (BFF) is a farm certification program dedicated to providing farmers science-based guidelines to provide a healthy habitat for managed and native pollinators on their operations. Since 2013, the program has certified over 800 farms across North America through an online self-certification. Bee Friendly Farming is an initiative of Pollinator Partnership, the world’s largest non-profit dedicated exclusively to the protection and promotion of pollinators and their ecosystems. For more information about Pollinator Partnership and Bee Friendly Farming, visit pollinator.org/bff or Bee Friendly Farming on Facebook.
 
Bee Friendly Farming works closely with our partners Project Apis m. and its Seeds for Bees program to help farmers make good seed choices and incorporate cover crops into their management practices for free or at a reduced cost.  Just like the synergy and mutual benefits of a cover crop to farm and pollinator, our partnership with Seeds for Bees mean that we can introduce our BFF members to a program offering superior and proven seed mixes.  And Seeds for Bees can help promote Bee Friendly Farming certification.

What can BFF mean to a farmer who installs a cover crop? A cover crop gets you across the starting point of certification – as it fulfills one of the seven steps for certification.  Those simple steps may seem intimidating but they form a system to establish good sustainable practices.  Here is what is required:

1. Offer forage providing good nutrition for bees on at least 3%* of land. Forage can be temporary, including crops and cover crops.
2. Provide bloom of different flowering plants throughout the growing season, especially in early spring and late autumn. There is no minimum land coverage for seasonal bloom.
3. If not inhibited by government mandated water restrictions, offer clean water for bees.
4. Provide habitat for nesting through features such as hedgerows, natural brush, or buffer strips.
5. Practice Integrated Pest Management (IPM); reduce or eliminate the use of chemicals.
6. Pay the annual $45 certification fee.
7. Complete the compliance form once every 3 years (audited by the BFF Task Force).

What do cover crops mean for the BFF farmer?  In addition to increased pollination services, orchards may experience increased water retention, reduced soil erosion, improved nutrient cycling, and soil health.  Our BFF farmers tell us that they see reduced weeds, reduced fertilizer costs, and more beneficial insects. There are lots of benefits from the plants that are often recommended for cover crops in some areas. The species commonly found in cover crop mixes– mustard, canola, vetch, buckwheat and pea each have their own unique attributes.  One of our Bee Friendly Farmers told me that her pea plants in the cover crop produced enough fresh peas for her family to enjoy at dinner!
 
For pollinators, a well-designed pollinator cover crop means temporary forage and sometimes a good place to call home.  Ground nesting bees appreciate bare ground to nest in.  Because of reduced habitat everywhere, nothing is more important than good nutrition for pollinators, and cover crops can play a significant role.  This also means that Integrated Pest Management needs to be employed, along with considerations for bloom and mowing schedules with pollinator cover crop.
 
Here are three key points to remember about Bee friendly Farming:

1. Bee Friendly Farming is a certification program that provides guidelines for farmers interested in promoting the health of managed and native pollinators on their lands.
2. Bee Friendly Farming works directly with farmers and growers to help protect, preserve and promote the pollinator population.
3. Bee Friendly Farming guidelines serve as a checklist for responsible practices to protect pollinators and their ecosystems.

Take time to see how Bee Friendly Farming can benefit your operation – there are significant advantages for the farmer and plenty of opportunities to seek assistance through Bee Friendly Farming and Seeds for Bees.  Feel free to contact us at info@pollinator.org if you have specific questions.

By Laurie Davies Adams,
President and CEO, Pollinator Partnership and Bee Friendly Farming