Planting a Profitable Pollinator Habitat with Native Nebraska Plants

View the project final report

Commodities

• Additional Plants: herbs, native plants

Practices

• Crop Production: pollinator habitat

Despite the proven benefits of providing on-farm habitat for pollinators, many growers are hesitant to dedicate time or space to such endeavors and instead focus their energies on revenue generating annual crops.  We plan to show that there are a number of pollinator-friendly plants native to Nebraska that can be utilized to build a stronger, healthier farm ecosystem while simultaneously providing an additional revenue stream.  We will plant a variety of perennials and self seeding annuals and evaluate them on their ability to generate profit. We hope to show that these native plants can produce revenue on par with annual vegetables but with far less year-to-year maintenance or inputs.

1. Plant 12 species of native Nebraska plants to establish a permanent pollinator habitat on our farm and evaluate each variety’s ability to generate profit.
2. Host a field day in partnership with UNL extension educator John Porter to share the results of our project with local producers.
3. Host horticulture students from Metropolitan Community College for an on-farm demonstration outlining our approach and results of the project.
4. Make a YouTube video explaining our project and highlighting the successes and failures.
5. Publish one-page production charts for all 12 varieties to demonstrate profit potential.