Bees and Sustainable Food Production Rufus Isaacs Department of Entomology Michigan State University

MSUE & MSU AgBioResearch State Council March 12, 2013

Berry Crops Entomology Program @ MSU • Pest management & pollination.

• Research & extension.

• Blueberry, grape, raspberry, strawberry…and biofuels.

• 3 postdocs, 3 graduate students, two technicians, and a small army of undergraduate students!

USDA NIFA and Specialty Crop Research Initiative Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center

US EPA MDARD: Specialty Crop Block Grant Program and Grape & Wine Council

MBG Marketing National Grape Cooperative Michigan State Horticultural Society

MSU AgBio Research MSU Extension Project GREEEN

AgChem Industries Operation Pollinator

Agriculture’s global extent

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005

Baulcombe et al. (2009) Science and the Sustainable Intensification of Global Agriculture. The Royal Society.

Pollination reduces the risk of low yields and poor quality

Jim Cane, USDA-ARS

Michigan fruits and vegetables

Blueberry $120 million

Cherry $80 million

Apple $105 million

Strawberry $6 million

Peach $10 million

Pickling cucumbers $35 million

Honey production 4 million pounds $7 million

Integrated Crop Pollination

Integrated Crop

Pollination

Honey bees Alternative

managed bees Wild bees

Pesticide stewardship

Habitat management

Pollination sampling

Horticultural practices

Decision support tools

Grower education

The combined use of different pollinator species, habitat augmentation, and

management practices to provide reliable and economical pollination of crops

• Do farm management practices affect wild bee communities?

• Can pollinator habitat support wild bees and pollination?

Temporal overlap of pollinator and pest activity

April May June July Aug Sept

Osmia bees

andrenid bees

halictid bees

Bombus queens

Bombus workers

= Blueberry bloom

Insecticide use in Michigan blueberries, 2001-2011

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

2001

2003

2005

2007

2009

2011

USDA – NASS Reports P

erc

en

t o

f ac

res

tre

ate

d

Organophosphate Carbamate Pyrethroid Neonic. IGR Org.

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

90,000

100,000

2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011

Tota

l lb

s o

f b

road

sp

ect

rum

AI Broad spectrum

Reduced risk

Trends in insecticide use

Total lb

s of re

du

ced

-risk AI

USDA – NASS Reports

SWD Resources from MSU www.ipm.msu.edu/SWD.htm

beardtongue, Penstemon hirsutus

Native plant

golden Alexanders, Zizia aurea

common ninebark, Physocarpus opulifolius

late figwort, Scrophularia marilandica

swamp milkweed, Asclepias incarnata

Culver's root, Veronicastrum virginicum

yellow coneflower, Ratibida pinnata

nodding wild onion, Allium cernuum

meadowsweet, Spiraea alba

yellow giant hyssop, Agastache nepetoides

horsemint/spotted beebalm, Monarda punctata

Missouri ironweed, Vernonia missurica

cup plant, Silphium perfoliatum

pale Indian plantain, Cacalia atriplicifolia

boneset, Eupatorium perfoliatum

blue lobelia, Lobelia siphilitica

pale-leaved sunflower, Helianthus strumosus

Riddell's goldenrod, Solidago riddellii

New England aster, Aster novae-angliae

smooth aster, Aster laevis

Aug May Jun Jul Sep Oct

Approximate Bloom Period

American elder, Sambucus canadensis

Apr

willow, Salix spp.

wild cherry, Prunus spp. black chokecherry, Aronia melanocarpa

silky dogwood, Cornus amomum

Season-long pollinator plant mix options

www.nativeplants.msu.edu

Programs for pollinators on farms

Michigan’s CRP-SAFE Program. • 2009-2013, target of 2500 acres in productive lands

• Pays 90% of establishment costs (~$600 per acre) and rental

• Currently 1700 hectares enrolled

Government programs provide cost-sharing. • Available nationwide with continuous signup • 2 acre minimum, in areas > 0.2 hectare

Flower plot establishment

May 2009

June 2010

June 2011

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

2009 2010 2011 2012

Nati

ve b

ees p

er

15 m

inu

tes

Control Edge

Control Interior

Flower Edge

Flower Interior

More native bees on blueberry flowers next to flowering habitat

a

ab

b

b

F = 4.15 P = 0.013

Grass

Grass

Blaauw & Isaacs, in review

Pollinator habitat supports increased blueberry yield

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000Grass Flower

P= 0.029 P = 0.39

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

Edge Interior

Control Flower

Esti

mat

ed

yie

ld p

er

he

ctar

e (

kg)

P = 0.0038 P = 0.018

Grass

2011

2012

Awareness, education, demonstration

www.nativeplants.msu.edu

Integrated Crop Pollination

Integrated Crop

Pollination

Honey bees Alternative

managed bees Wild bees

Pesticide stewardship

Habitat management

Pollination sampling

Horticultural practices

Decision support tools

Grower education

The combined use of different pollinator species, habitat augmentation, and

management practices to provide reliable and economical pollination of crops

University of Vermont

Rutgers University

Pennsylvania State University

University of Florida

Michigan State University

Chicago Botanic Garden

Simon Fraser University

Wenatchee Valley College

USDA-ARS Native Bee Lab

UC Berkeley UC Davis

Pacific Pollination

Oregon State University

Xerces Society

Integrated Crop Pollination project: 2012-2017

Specialty Crop Research Initiative www.icpbees.org

Loyola University

Saint Mary of the Woods College

PROJECT OBJECTIVES 1. Identify economically-important wild pollinators and factors affecting their abundance.

2. Evaluate habitat management practices to improve crop pollination.

3. Determine performance of alternative managed bees as specialty crop pollinators.

4. Deliver ICP practices for specialty crop producers.

5. Determine optimal methods for ICP information delivery and measure ICP adoption.