July 10, 2018
It’s not just about honey. Cities are full of bees, and in this double episode we hear about Brisbane bees and the Australian native alternative to European honey bees from Tim Heard of Sugarbag Bees, we talk with urban bee researcher Scott MacIvor from Toronto, and we go on an urban bee field trip on top of a chocolate factory with researcher Doug Sponsler and bee keeper Don Shump of the Philadelphia Bee Company.
June 27, 2018
Planting season for corn and soybeans across the U.S. corn belt is drawing to a close. As they plant, farmers are participating in what is likely to be one of the largest deployments of insecticides in United States history.
June 22, 2018
Study represents largest effort to date to identify novel pathogens in global bee populations. An international team of researchers has discovered evidence of 27 previously unknown viruses in bees. The finding could help scientists design strategies to prevent the spread of viral pathogens among these important pollinators.
June 11, 2018
Vacant land and urban agriculture are rejuvenating wild bee populations. Bees love cities. What can cities do to love them back?
May 23, 2018
Story and photos by Jim Hale
May 16, 2018
When it comes to the importance of bees, Connie Schmotzer does not mince words. "Without bees, the world's food supply would be cut drastically, threatening the survival of many plants, animals and humans," said the Penn State Extension Master Gardener coordinator and horticulture educator. "Life, as we know it, would be much different — and not for the better."
May 10, 2018
A nearly $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will support Penn State researchers in determining best management practices for organic beekeeping by comparing organic and chemical-free to conventional management systems.
May 3, 2018
This is the 3rd of eleven short news articles written by students, during the professional development class. This year we had the students interview their advisor(s), in an effort to help them better understand the larger context of their projects.
April 19, 2018
Most people have probably seen the phrase “bees are dying at an alarming rate” on the internet. Most pass it off as a joke, but one Penn State organization is taking it to heart.
April 4, 2018
As you plan your spring garden, consider adding pollinator-friendly trees and plants to provide food and habitat for bee populations that are in decline across the country and worldwide.
April 4, 2018
The new Hive exhibit at Discovery Space allows young children to act out the social lives of bees. Children can wear a bee costume, buzz over to larger-than-life flowers to collect pollen and nectar, take the nectar into the hive and do the waggle dance.
March 28, 2018
Margarita Lopez-Uribe, assistant professor of entomology, was a guest on the "1A" program to discuss pollinator health and the importance of feral bee species
March 27, 2018
The Center for Pollinator Research at Penn State, in collaboration with researchers at the University of California, Davis; the University of Minnesota; and Dickinson College will receive more than $2 million from the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research and the United States Department of Agriculture to translate basic research into online decision support tools to help beekeepers and land managers maintain and expand populations of managed and wild bees.
March 27, 2018
A generous commitment from local leaders will help The Arboretum at Penn State to move forward with its plans for a world-class pollinators’ garden. State College real estate developer Galen Dreibelbis, and his wife, Nancy, have committed $1 million to support construction of the new Pollinators’ Garden in the H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens. The Dreibelbises’ gift — together with a major investment from Skip Smith and gifts from other donors — completes the project’s initial fundraising goal and will allow the University to break ground on the project.
March 21, 2018
Investment from Penn State alumnus and leading philanthropist Charles H. “Skip” Smith will enable The Arboretum at Penn State to fulfill its longstanding vision for a garden that will attract and sustain native pollinator species of birds and insects. Smith, whose founding gift launched construction of the Arboretum in 2010, has made a series of gifts totaling $4.5 million to support construction of a new and enhanced Pollinators’ Garden in the H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens. The gifts — together with commitments from other donors — complete the project’s initial fundraising goal of $5.3 million and will allow construction to begin.
March 14, 2018
New Tools and Science-Based Best Practices Will Enhance Efforts to Combat Native and Managed Pollinator Population Declines
February 8, 2018
Mehmet Ali Döke earned his bachelor’s in Molecular Biology and Genetics, and master’s in Biology from Middle East Technical University in Turkey. During his junior year, he started working with honey bees and was a part of the group who surveyed the beekeepers in Turkey to document bee losses and possible reasons in coordination with the COLOSS effort. In his master’s, Mehmet investigated the seasonal variation of a metabolic enzyme in honey bees.
February 1, 2018
We all know the hashtag #SaveTheBees as a meme that has infiltrated the internet and taken Twitter by storm. We’ve even seen students at home football games hanging signs advocating for the little guys. But why do the bees need saving? How can we save the bees? And why should we care about the dwindling populations of the stinging, buzzing insects?
January 25, 2018
As Congress prepares to enact a new five-year farm bill, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue paid a visit to Penn State's University Park campus Jan. 24 as part of a tour through Pennsylvania to unveil the Department of Agriculture's legislative principles. Perdue met with College of Agricultural Sciences faculty, students and administrators and visited research facilities.
January 24, 2018
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue paid a visit to Penn State's University Park campus on Jan. 24 as part of a tour through Pennsylvania to unveil the Department of Agriculture's legislative principles as Congress prepares to enact a new five-year farm bill.
January 11, 2018
Surveys of U.S. beekeepers have documented a 28 percent decline (on average) in honey bee colonies each winter during the last ten years, and a 28-45 percent decline (on average) during the full year. In Pennsylvania, beekeepers reported a loss of 52 percent of their colonies over the last winter (2016-2017).
January 10, 2018
Standing in front of one of the more popular exhibits at the Pennsylvania Farm Show—an educational display on the importance of bees to society—state Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding today helped unveil a new report intended to support healthy pollinator populations in the face of challenges that have decimated some species.
December 13, 2017
Beginner and experienced beekeepers and those thinking about taking up backyard beekeeping can get the information they need to be successful from Beekeeping 101, an online beekeeping course offered by Penn State Extension.
December 7, 2017
Listen in as we go over pesticide’s effects on pollinators, the difficulties in testing, and the advantages certain insects have in fighting pesticides.
November 17, 2017
A nearly $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will support Penn State researchers in determining best management practices for organic beekeeping by comparing organic and chemical-free to conventional management systems. The funding comes from the Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative of USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
November 6, 2017
November 2017 Newsletter
October 17, 2017
Beekeeping was simpler 30 years ago, when Ron Bogansky first set up hives on the small hobby farm he shares with his wife.
October 4, 2017
A grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will enhance an innovative Penn State graduate training program in entomology and ecology aimed at helping to solve the multifaceted problem of pollinator decline.
September 27, 2017
Harrisburg, PA – Farmers, gardeners and other Pennsylvanians concerned about the health of pollinators given their critically important role growing and producing food now have the chance to comment on a draft of the state’s proposed Pollinator Protection Plan. The plan, developed by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture and Center for Pollinator Research at Penn State University is designed to protect bees and other insects that pollinate nearly 75 percent of the commonwealth’s food crops.
September 15, 2017
With the decline of insect pollinators alarming scientists, Emily Erickson, a Penn State doctoral student in entomology, is focused on a conservation solution.
