In an effort to battle invasive species, Michigan State University is becoming a more welcoming place for bees, butterflies, and other native pollinators. Thanks to a grant from Project Wingspan, the university is adding new pollinator gardens on campus.
Matt Bailey, MSU’s Landscape Services manager, and Lars Brudvig, associate professor of plant biology in the College of Natural Science applied for the grant to make the campus more pollinator friendly.
As a recipient of the grant, MSU received 16 different species of native seed including black-eyed Susans, buttonbush, foxglove, purple coneflower, milkweed and blazing star wildflower to help reclaim sites as native wildlife habitats.
Bailey says the university is also implementing sustainable maintenance practices.
“Just basically adding more native areas on campus, you know, minimizing some of our mowing operations so that we’re, you know, reducing emissions," he said. "We’re adding more areas for pests and animals and insects, you know, to pollinate more things so that we have more flowers on campus.”
Student organizations are also a part of this project.
“We’re trying to add more pollinator areas across campus, you know, working with 10 or more sustainable student groups, so always looking for opportunities to engage with them. So I thought it would be a good opportunity to apply for this grant and work with some students on campus,” said Bailey.
The project is a collaborative effort between the College of Natural Science’s Plant Biology Department and the student Fisheries and Wildlife Club, with help from Infrastructure Planning and Facilities Landscape Services.
Landscape Services are working on their fourth and fifth pollinator areas on campus, with monitoring and maintenance to continue over the next few years.
McKoy's story is brought to you as part of a partnership between WKAR and Michigan State University's Knight Center for Environmental Journalism.