Insect pollinators are currently in decline.  This is, in part, due to the loss of habitats and foraging resources for pollen and nectar.  Pesticides, like the neonicotinoids, don’t help. Lawns and pollinators. “No mow May” has been promoted by Plantlife to  provide a feast for pollinators,  tackle pollution,  reduce urban heat extremes, and  lock away atmospheric carbon Lawns in gardens, parks, recreation grounds etc. represent a significant proportion of green space in cities, towns and villages. If these spaces and suburban lawns are managed with pollinators in mind, then they could become an important source of foraging resources.  Now, there is evidence accumulating that this is the case.  A  recent study used the lawns at Ministry of Justice prison and court sites.   Each site contained four patches,  A patch mown as normal every two weeks - the control  A patch mown every 4 weeks A patch mown every 6 weeks A patch mown every 12 weeks Weekly surveys of pollinators and flowering plants were made throughout June to late August. Butterflies, bees, bumblebees, hoverflies and beetles were recorded as pollinators.   The patches that were mowed less frequently (6 and 12 weeks) had many more pollinators [in fact 170% higher than the 2 week patch], and more flowers.  The most common plants recorded included selfheal, daisy, dandelion, creeping buttercup, and white clover.  Apart from the increase in biodiversity, the patches were ‘visually pleasant’, contributing to the wellbeing of staff / prisoners and saved on lawnmower fuel (cost). Details of the study : https://conservationevidencejournal.com/reference/pdf/12801 Farms and Pollinators. Farms and their crops, such as clover and oil seed rape, can offer a rich supply of pollen and nectar to pollinators.    The ‘richness’ of this supply can draw pollinators away from more natural areas.  However, the pollinators can go from ‘feast to famine’, when the crop has finished flowering.   A Swedish study has followed the behaviour of farmland pollinators after clover flowering.  They found that if natural areas were available after the flowering of the clover, then pollinators [like different bumble bee species] became more selective in their foraging.  This reduces the intensity of competition between the various pollinator species.  Areas of natural vegetation on farmland are therefore important in helping pollinators adapt after crops (such as clover) have finished flowering. [caption id="attachment_33904" align="aligncenter" width="650"] Oilseed rape[/caption] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167880924005735?via=ihub Gardens and pollinators. A study In the Boston area of the US has revealed that small gardens with a diverse range of plants are important to pollinators.  The researchers first used Google Street View to identify and categorise some 86,000 front gardens (or yards, in their terminology) across the area - ranging from lawns to diverse flower gardens. They then visited 500+ of these gardens when the plants were flowering [in 2021], identifying and documenting the plants in each.   The found that : Whilst the higher income areas tended to have more cultivated flower gardens, these gardens were home fewer wild flower (weed) species. Small gardens often had the richest diversity of plants in flower as compared to those with lawns. The authors of the study conclude “Dense urban areas are a promising target for pollinator conservation.” Detail of this study can be found here : https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169204624002706?via=ihub