How many of you remember my article where I wrote about Syngenta’s Operation Pollinator program? In essence, it helps golf clubs to create pollen and nectar-rich habitats in out-of-play areas.
The importance of saving pollinators
Before I would share the details of Farleigh Golf Club‘s participation in Syngenta’s Operation Pollinator program, let’s summarize the importance of saving pollinators:
- Pollination: is among the most visible and important ecosystem services and is necessary for the reproduction of 60–70% of all plant species and 35% of global crop production (A. Klein et al. 2007, Kremen et al. 2007, Losey and Vaughan 2006).
- First, of major concern in North America and northern Europe, is the mysterious honey bee colony collapse disorder (CCD) that has resulted in the loss of 50–90% of hives in the USA (Cox-Foster et al., 2007).
- Great Britain: a net loss of over 2.7 million occupied 1 km grid cells for pollinator species between 1980 and 2013.
Why we are losing pollinators?
Here are some reasons why we lose pollinators:
- The loss of suitable habitat. Including forage and nesting or breeding sites.
- Nest and breeding sites. The loss and fragmentation of suitable habitats reduce nesting and breeding opportunities.
- Climate change.
- Pesticides, especially insecticides, are often blamed directly for bee and other pollinator losses. Pesticides, including weed killers, can also remove potential food plants and prey species for those pollinators that have herbivorous or predatory larvae.
Farleigh Golf Club & Operation Pollinator program
I hope now it is more obvious why I am so delighted to hear about Farleigh Golf Club‘s bold decision to join Syngenta’s Operation Pollinator program.
As part of the plans, the club will enhance its seventh hole on the red loop and third on the blue to provide more outstanding habitats and food sources for a range of native bees and other pollinating insects across its golf courses.
James Ibbetson, Farleigh’s general manager, said:
“By creating the best possible habitat for them to continue their essential cycling of nutrients, pollination, dispersion of seeds, as well as maintaining soil structure and fertility, all of which is beneficial to the world and the golf course, we’re doing our bit to hopefully prevent the extinction of some of our critical pollinating insects, such as bumblebees, and continue the growth of grass and crops.”