Bayer CropScience turned its commitment to bee health up a notch during National Pollinator Week, celebrated June 16 to 22.
The company launched its initiatives with a congressional reception in Washington, D.C., June 18. Held as a conclusion to its second Bee Care Tour, the event gathered congressional officials and others interested in bee health to learn more about the importance of pollinators.
The reception honored this year’s recipient of the second annual Bayer Bee Care Community Leadership Award, an accolade presented to an organization that has harnessed the power of the honeybee colony to develop innovative projects that benefit a community. The award, an initiative of Bayer’s North American Bee Care Program, provides a $5,000 grant to the winner to be used in support of a community beekeeping project.
This year’s recipient was Herbert Everhart, beekeeper and owner of Eversweet Apiaries in Kearneysville, W. Va.
As a disabled Vietnam veteran who lost a leg in the war, Everhart helped start what may be the first beekeeping program for veterans in the United States. Sponsored by the West Virginia Eastern Panhandle Beekeeping Association, the two-year program is designed to educate veterans on all aspects of beekeeping, including establishing
“I am honored to be chosen to receive this year’s Bee Care Community Leadership Award,” Everhart said. “The grant will enable us to expand our project significantly. In addition to supporting the veterans program, some of the funds will also be used to support our beekeeping program targeted toward youth.”
Bayer’s National Pollinator Week events also included a pollinator garden planting on June 19 at The SEED School of Washington, D.C.
The company partnered with the University of the District of Columbia (UDC) Master Gardener Program to plant the garden. Bayer will donate $10,000 over two years to the school for maintenance of the garden.
The planting event gathered students, local agriculture and beekeeping organizations, industry experts and Bayer employees to help establish forage to provide honeybees with proper nutrition. A portable observation hive of live bees helped educate attendees on the interworking of a hive and emphasize the importance of colony nutrition.
“Pollinator forage is essential to the health of honey bees,” said Sandra Farber, president of the UDC Master Gardener Program. “We are delighted to partner with Bayer CropScience and come together with students and industry stakeholders to plant a garden to support pollinator health.”
For more information on Bayer’s activities during National Pollinator Week and to learn more about the company’s commitment to bee health, which includes the opening of a North American Bee Care Center, visit www.pollinatorweek.bayer.com and LandscapeManagement.net, respectively.
Photos: Bayer
