National Pollinator Week 2020

This year, National Pollinator Week is June 22 to June 28, celebrating the value that pollinators such as bees, birds, butterflies, bats, and beetles provide to the ecosystem.

Pollinators, and natural enemies, can be harmed by pesticides when people are trying to control pests in their gardens and landscapes. Pollinators can be killed or harmed if they are sprayed or exposed directly to a pesticide, and when they encounter pesticide residues in the environment. You can protect pollinators in your garden and landscapes by doing the following:

• Use pesticides sparingly. Many pests can be managed using an integrated approach without the need to apply pesticides.
• Read labels carefully. Proper application of pesticides can reduce pesticide exposure to pollinators and natural enemies.
• Choose selective and nonpersistent pesticides. Avoid broad-spectrum, persistent insecticides such as carbamates, organophosphates, and pyrethroids.
• Select less toxic insecticides when possible. Look for soaps, insecticidal oils, microbial insecticides and botanical insecticides to manage pest outbreaks.

Adult honey bee,Apis mellifera. (Credit: Jack Kelly Clark)

Not sure how to assess the risk to pollinators? You can evaluate potential hazards using our active ingredient database and by consulting the bee precaution pesticide rating database.

For more information, see this page on protecting natural enemies and pollinators and find recommended practices to protect bees from pesticides.