Did you know that bees, bats, butterflies and hummingbirds help to pollinate 75% of the world’s food crops? In fact, honey bees are the most important insect pollinator for crops grown in North Carolina.

As a certified Bee Campus USA, NC State supports pollinator species by increasing native plants on campus, providing pollinator nest sites, and reducing the use of pesticides and air pollutants.

Our Wolfpack community can also promote pollinators off-campus with a few of these bee-friendly tips:

• Incorporate native and pollinator-friendly plants in outdoor gardens
• ‘Bee’ diverse in plant and flower selections to support the 560 different species of native bees
• Build bee condos to provide shelter and water stations such as a birdbath filled with rocks
• ‘Bee’ careful with chemicals and mow lawns less frequently

Learn more about pollinators, including a map of campus gardens and apiaries, by visiting sustainability.ncsu.edu/campus/pollinators.

This post was originally published in Sustainability News.