Native pollinators are an important source of free pollination. You can encourage them by preserving “edges” around your property where flowering annuals and perennial shrubs and bee nesting sites are preserved. Idle land can also be planted in annuals and perennial shrubs that bloom at times when natural bloom is low. Some good candidates for bee pasture are sunflower, vitex, numerous sages, and crape myrtle.
- Keith Delaplane, University of Georgia
