Pollinator insects play a critical role in the agricultural world. Without their natural transference of pollen from plant to plant while obtaining nutrients, many types of vegetables and fruit for human consumption would not exist. More than 80 percent of plants are pollinated by animals, mainly insects.
One area in which people can help support pollinator populations is by growing native flowering plants, from which the pollinators obtain protein and lipids from the pollen and carbohydrates and amino acids from the nectar.
Researchers at New Mexico State University’s (NMSU) College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences are studying the activity of insects, both pollinator and beneficial, around native plants to determine what mix of flowering cultivars will attract the different insect types. This study is supported by USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture's Crop Protection and Pest Management Program - Extension Implementation Program grant.
When planning a pollinator garden, it is important to include plants that flower at different times of the season.
For more information about the project, check out the current research information system.
