Attracting Native Pollinators : The Xerces Society Guide to Conserving North American Bees and Butterflies and Their Habitat

With the recent decline of the European honey bee, it is more important than ever to encourage the activity of other native pollinators to keep your flowers beautiful and your grains and produce plentiful. In __Attracting Native Pollinators__, you'll find ideas for building nesting structures and creating a welcoming habitat for an array of diverse pollinators that includes not only bees, but butterflies, moths, and more. Take action and protect North America's food supply for the future, while at the same time enjoying a happily bustling landscape. The recent decline of the European honey bee and other pollinators in North America poses a serious challenge to our food supply and ecological health. About 75 percent of all flowering plants rely on pollinators in order to set seed or fruit, andfrom these plants comes one-third of the planet's food. Attracting Native Pollinators is a comprehensive guidebook for gardeners, small farmers, orchardists, beekeepers, naturalists, environmentalists, and public land managers on how to protect and encourage the activity of the native pollinators of North America. Written by staff of the Xerces Society, an international nonprofit organization that is leading the way in pollinator conservation, this book presents a thorough overview of the problem along with positive solutions for how to provide bountiful harvests on farms and gardens, maintain healthy plant communinities in wildlands, provide food for wildlife, and beautify the landscape with flowers. Full-color photographs introduce readers to more than 80 species of native pollinators -- including bees, flies, butterflies, wasps, and moths -- noting each one's range and habits. The heart of the book provides detailed garden plans and techniques showing how to create flowering habitat to attract a variety of these pollinators, help expand the pollinator population, and provide pollinators with inviting nesting sites. Readers will also find useful instructions for creating nesting structures, educational activities for involving children, and an extensive list of resources. Attracting Native Pollinators is an essential reference book and action guide for anyone who is involved in growing food or is concerned about the future of our food supply. The recent decline of the European honey bee and other pollinators in North America poses a serious challenge to our food supply and ecological health. About 75 percent of all flowering plants rely on pollinators in order to set seed or fruit, and from these plants comes one-third of the planet's food. Attracting Native Pollinators is a comprehensive guidebook for gardeners, small farmers, orchardists, beekeepers, naturalists, environmentalists, and public land managers on how to protect and encourage the activity of the native pollinators of North America. Written by staff of the Xerces Society, an international nonprofit organization that is leading the way in pollinator conservation, this book presents a thorough overview of the problem along with positive solutions for how to provide bountiful harvests on farms and gardens, maintain healthy plant communinities in wildlands, provide food for wildlife, and beautify the landscape with flowers. Full-color photographs introduce readers to more than 80 species of native pollinators -- including bees, flies, butterflies, wasps, and moths -- noting each one's range and habits. The heart of the book provides detailed garden plans and techniques showing how to create flowering habitat to attract a variety of these pollinators, help expand the pollinator population, and provide pollinators with inviting nesting sites. Readers will also find useful instructions for creating nesting structures, educational activities for involving children, and an extensive list of resources. Attracting Native Pollinators is an essential reference book and action guide for anyone who is involved in growing food or is concerned about the future of our food supply

Protect the Pollinators That Help Feed the World Bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, flies, and some beetles pollinate more than 70 percent of flowering plants, but North America's native pollinators face multiple threats to their health and habitat. The Xerces Society offers a complete action plan of protecting these industrious animals by providing flowering habitat and nesting sites.

Providing Healthy Habitats for Pollinators:
Supports bountiful farm and garden harvests Maintains healthy plant communities Provides food for other wildlife Beautifies your landscape with flower plants

"Precise, elegant, and thoughtful, the recommendations offered by the Xerces Society will become essential to advancing a healthy and diverse food-production system." - Gary Paul Nabhan, The Forgotten Pollinators and Renewing America's Food Traditions

"Here is the most comprehensive treatment yet of native pollinators, detailing natural history, ecological importance, taxonomy, conservation, and restoration of native pollinator communities. Attracting Native Pollinators belongs on the bookshelf to everyone who values the future of the natural world." - Douglas W. Tallamy, author, Bringing Nature Home

With the recent decline of the European honey bee, it is more important than ever to encourage the activity of other native pollinators to keep your flowers beautiful and your grains and produce plentiful. In Attracting Native Pollinators, you{u2019}ll find ideas for building nesting structures and creating a welcoming habitat for an array of diverse pollinators that includes not only bees, but butterflies, moths, and more. Take action and protect North America{u2019}s food supply for the future, while at the same time enjoying a happily bustling landscape