Mark your calendars now! August 19 is National Honey Bee Day, and Bayer’s Feed a Bee will be buzzing across the country to plant thousands of wildflowers from New York to California – all in one day.

Since 2015, the Feed a Bee initiative has distributed over 3 billion wildflower seeds for pollinator plantings, establishing additional nutrition and habitat sources across the nation.

Sponsored by the Bayer Bee Care Program, the $500,000 Feed a Bee initiative launched earlier this year with the goal to facilitate forage plantings or enhancements in every state by the end of 2018.

More than 100 organizations have applied for funding to date, including wildlife agencies, nonprofit organizations, schools and universities, homeowners' associations and more, illustrating the growing interest in pollinator health in the U.S.

The Allegheny County Conservation District, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania received a Feed A Bee grant in this round.

"This Feed a Bee grant will help us create a garden space that was originally visualized by two incredible women who have since passed away," said Katy Fries, garden manager of Auburn's School Park Community Garden. "With this funding, we hope to enhance the natural beauty of the garden and safeguard foraging areas for our pollinators."

The grant funds, awarded on a rolling basis, are made available to organizations working to combat the issue of limited pollinator forage throughout the country and to provide a tangible, sustainable solution to this challenge.

For more information on how to apply for funding, visit Bayer’s Feed A Bee webpage.

Helpful Links:

Penn State Center For Pollinator Research

Pollinator Garden Certification

Landscapes For Honey Bees

Ernst Seeds (Crawford County): Pollinator Habitat

NewsClips:

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Related Stories:

Pollinator Population Is Going Down In PA Due to Pesticides Parasites, Pathogens

Bayer Feed A Bee Program Announces Pollinator Forage Initiative Grants, 1 In PA

Bayer CropScience, Ernst Conservation Seeds Partner To create Pollinator Habitat

[Posted: August 15, 2017].

8/21/2017