For all the lawns that outrage you, covered in pesticides, and the frustration you feel when others don’t “get it,” keep your focus on why it matters. The bees and the birds belong, right alongside us. We help them and they help us. Let’s celebrate. It’s pollinator week ❤️🐝🦋. #pollinators🐝 #pollinatorweek #pollinatorweek2025

From the USDA: “Common milkweed is Nature’s mega food market for insects. Over 450 insects are known to feed on some portion of the plant. Numerous insects are attracted to the nectar-laden flowers and it is not at all uncommon to see flies, beetles, ants, bees, wasps, and butterflies on the flowers at the same time (Taylor, n.d.).” Taylor, D. (n.d.) Plant of the Week: Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca L.). U.S. Forest Service. https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/plant-of-the-week/asclepisyriaca.shtml#:~:text=Common%20milkweed%20is%20Nature%27s%20mega,flowers%20at% 20the%20same%20time. Learn more at . All links in linktree.

Female Spring Beauty Mining Bees are “Pretty in Pink!” Female Spring Beauty Mining Bees (Andrena erigeniae) collect pollen exclusively from Spring Beauty plants (Claytonia spp.) to feed their young. Although these native bees are quite small, they are fairly easy to identify because Spring Beauty pollen is an unusual light pink. If you see a bee foraging on Spring Beauty flowers wearing “pink pollen pants,” on their hind legs , chances are you’ve spotted this specialist bee! Spring Beauty is a beautiful, early-blooming spring ephemeral wildflower in the eastern US. It is easy to grow and can be naturalized in woodlands, garden borders or lawns in rich soil with good drainage. If you plant Spring Beauty, the specialist mining bees may come! One iNaturalist user in Brooklyn, NY reported rapid success with establishing Spring Beauty plants, noting, “Claytonia virginica planted Fall 2024, bees showed up Spring 2025.” Photo credits: Spring Beauty Mining Bee, Max McCarthy; Spring Beauty plants, iNaturalist atraut87301, CC BY-SA 4.0 #springbeauty #springephemeralwildflowers #specialistbees

Growing Community Through Pollinator Gardens in Brookline, Massachusetts When the Brookline Pollinator Pathway was started a few years ago, their goal was simple: plant more native flowers and help pollinators thrive. But as they dug in, they discovered something deeper. Each garden they planted became a place where people came together, stood in awe at the beauty of nature, shared stories, asked questions, and imagined what they could create for their community. Brookline Pollinator Pathway have found that ecological restoration isn’t just about landscapes, it’s about relationships. When people feel invited to shape the world around them, they show up with creativity and care. Their gardens are living proof that small acts: watering, planting, sharing seeds, can build a culture of stewardship. Read more about these inspiring efforts from our Spring 2026 newsletter, linked in our Linktree/bio and below: Our Spring 2026 Newsletter: /pollinator-pathway-newsletter Photo: Planting Day at the Coolidge Corner Library. Photo credit: Brookline Pollinator Pathway #pollinatorgardens #stewardship #communitygardens #pollinatorpathway

On that fabled New York City street named Broadway, sits a ribbon of greenery, a peaceful splash of nature running north from 60th Street through the Upper West Side, Harlem and Washington Heights. Known as The Broadway Mall, this 5-mile chain of median islands, each 240 feet long and 20 feet wide, has long provided a narrow oasis amidst the dust and din of the urban bustle. But move over English ivy! It’s time to cede ground for golden rod, columbine, asters and sedges. Thanks to Ian Olsen, Director of Horticulture with the non-profit Broadway Mall Conservancy, this corridor of green, re-planted with a multitude of native plants, has become a vibrant connected urban habitat for native bees, butterflies, birds and local denizens who seek a quiet refuge, if only briefly, from the density and drama of city life. For more information about this vital habitat for urban wildlife, check out the Broadway Mall website, which includes a database and map of all the native plants on the Malls. Follow the Broadway Mall on Instagram @broadwaymallassociation and Facebook! Broadway Mall Association: #pollinatorpathway #newyork #urbangarden #urbanlandscape #pollinators🐝

Show your love for native pollinators by shopping at our new online Bonfire store, selling branded Pollinator Pathway t-shirts, sweatshirts, hats, and more! The collection of stylish, comfortable apparel is designed to raise awareness and support our mission of connecting habitat from coast to coast. Check out our Bonfire site linked in our linktree/bio or visit the link below! /store/pollinator-pathway/ #sustainableclothing #pollinatorpathway #supportnonprofits #giveback #merch

An estimated 5.5 million native mining bees have been found nesting in an Ithaca, NY cemetery: one of the largest ever recorded colonies! They were accidentally discovered in spring of 2022 when Rachel Fordyce, an employee of Cornell University’s entomology lab, walked through the East Lawn cemetery on her way to work. She noticed the bees and took some to her boss at the lab, Bryan Danforth, professor of entomology in the College and Agriculture and Life Sciences. They identified the bees as Regular Mining Bees (Andrena regularis), native ground nesting bees which are important pollinators of spring flowers. Cornell’s ProjectGNBee used emergence traps to estimate population size and continues to study the site. “Next time you pass by a cemetery—take a closer look. These spaces are often important refuges for plants and wildlife and are increasingly recognized as hotspots for large populations of ground-nesting bees.” (source: Project GNBee Instagram post.) Read more from the Phys.org article linked below and in our bio. Join the ProjectGNBee iNaturalist project at GNBee.org. Phys.org article: /news/2026-04-beneath-cemetery-million-wild-bees.html Photo of Regular Mining Bee: Jordan Kue, iNaturalist. CC BY-NC 4.0 #groundnestingbees #communityscience #nativebees

LET’S RESTORE NATURE, ONE YARD AT A TIME 🌿 The Pollinator Pathway is excited to be joining the FREE Less Lawn More Life Challenge — 12 weeks of expert-led actions to turn your outdoor space into a thriving habitat. It all kicks off May 7th with a live keynote from @RobinWallKimmerer ! Sign up for the live keynote and the challenge at: lesslawnmorelife.com (link in bio) Did it last year? Do it again! New experts, new resources, new prizes, same mission. Tag a friend who’s ready to see a little less lawn and a lot more life. In partnership with @HomegrownNationalPark @WildOnes #LessLawnMoreLife #RobinWallKimmerer #RewildAmerica #NatureStartsAtHome #YardTransformation

Plant Serviceberry for Pollinators! Serviceberries (Amelanchier spp.) are spring powerhouse plants, providing critical early forage for pollinators (like the mining bee in the photo) and hosting over 100 species of moths and butterflies. See the Spring Pollinator Pathway newsletter (linked below and in our bio) for ideas on how to incorporate this beautiful small tree into your green space. Link to Newsletter: /pollinator-pathway-newsletter Photo Credit: Karalyn Lamb #treesforbees #nativetrees #serviceberry

Ohio Pollinator Pathway Summit Builds Momentum Across the Region! This past January, more than 200 Pollinator Pathway members gathered in Ohio for a weekend dedicated to pollinators, native plants, and community action. The summit brought together regional Pollinator Pathway groups, as well as other conservation organizations, and hosted speakers from all around Central Ohio. The event was kicked off by Jana Hogan, Executive Director of the National Pollinator Pathway, followed by diverse local perspectives on the pollinator and native landscape movement through pop-up talks and in-depth breakout sessions. Read more in the Spring Pollinator Pathway newsletter, linked in our bio/linktree and below. Newsletter: /pollinator-pathway-newsletter Pictured left to right: Craig Toothman, Franklin County Pollinator Pathway; Susan King, Licking County Pollinator Pathway; Jana Hogan, Executive Director National Pollinator Pathway; Terry Hermsen, North Central Ohio Pollinator Pathway. #pollinatorpathway #lickingcountypollinatorpathway #franklinpollinatorpathway #northcentralohiopollinatorpathway

Hedgerows: Beautiful “living fences” for wildlife. It’s standard practice in urban and suburban areas to use plastic or wooden fencing to delineate property lines, screen unsightly views and provide privacy. But maybe it’s time to re-think that practice: we can accomplish similar goals AND provide much-needed habitat by planting a hedgerow, a beautiful “living fence” of layered native plantings. Hedgerows can be highly beneficial in urban and suburban spaces: providing food and shelter for wildlife, as well as creating pathways for safe movement between green spaces. Planting a hedgerow in a residential side yard, for example, will help connect front and backyard habitats. See the Spring Pollinator Pathway newsletter (linked in our bio) to download our hedgerow plan featuring low-maintenance, commercially available plants native to the eastern US. The plan provides a succession of bloom and host plants for pollinators, food and nesting habitat for birds, and four seasons of beauty for humans! You can also visit our newsletter to download the full plan here: /pollinator-pathway-newsletter #nativehedgerows #pollinatorplanting #wildlifegardening #pollinatorpathway #urbanhabitat

While some flora and fauna are slowly awakening from their long winter sleep, hard-working early native pollinators like mining and cellophane bees have been active for weeks, visiting spring ephemeral wildflowers and early-blooming trees. You may be seeing new queen bumblebees flying low over the ground in zig zag patterns, searching for suitable nesting sites. How can we best support hungry pollinators at this critical time, when forage sources are scarce? Think big! Plant native flowering trees, whose abundant blooms provide “meadows in the sky” for early pollinators emerging from hibernation with an urgent need to nourish themselves and their growing offspring. Read more of our Spring 2026 newsletter by visiting the link in our Linktree/bio or using the link below! /pollinator-pathway-newsletter Subscribe using the link below and ‘bee’ part of the pathway! (Link also in bio/linktree). /contact-us #pollinatorpathway #newsletter #savethebees #savethepollinators