Curse of the American lawn Bees in the urban core Helping people help bees
Camilo Bee Lab

research

the curse of the american lawn

Finding alternatives to manicured yards

 
 
The American lawn has little appeal to pollinators. Instead, leave your grass long, plant flowers, and leave bare soil for ground-nesting bees.

The American lawn has little appeal to pollinators. Instead, leave your grass long, plant flowers, and leave bare soil for ground-nesting bees.

The traditional American lawn is designed to signal organization: it is carefully manicured, ultra green, and uniform in every way.

But the American lawn has little appeal to pollinators and is environmentally costly to maintain. In fact, many people want to change their landscaping practices, but they feel intimidated, not knowing where to start or why certain practices are recommended.

In this study, we evaluate the Audubon’s Society’s ‘Bring Conservation Home’ program, which has over 1,100 enrolled households in the greater St. Louis area. Our goal is to evaluate the effectiveness of the program and develop best practices for executing landscaping programs like this one. We want to find effective ways to communicate about these programs and ensure they achieve their desired goals.

 
 
There are over 1,100 homes enrolled in Audubon’s Bring Conservation Home program. The houses are certified to different levels based on how many habitat friendly criteria they meet. Colors denote level with red is the lowest, follow by blue, orange …

There are over 1,100 homes enrolled in Audubon’s Bring Conservation Home program. The houses are certified to different levels based on how many habitat friendly criteria they meet. Colors denote level with red is the lowest, follow by blue, orange and then purple as the highest.

watch this video to learn more

POLLINATOR POWER: You can BEE lazy and not even leave home or farm to help bees, the pollinator powerhouses for our favorite foods. Mowing less, mulching less, and spraying less are all easy ways to help bees and other pollinators. It will also save time and money for other activities. Photo: Jon Flobrant / Unsplash

 

What a pollinator actually wants.

Bees like the opposite of the typical American lawn. They want a variety of plant heights and flower sizes. They need access to bare soil to make their nests (most bees do not live in hives!). They want a diversity of native flowers, land cover, and flowering trees to ensure they can meet their needs. When there is grass, they like it on the taller side, not mowed like a crewcut every weekend.

 
 
 

what we’re discovering

Our methods include visiting yards to determine if participants are meeting program guidelines and observing how their yards differ across the different levels of enrollment in the program. We measure differences in birds, bees, mosquitos, and plants and compare those numbers with those not participating in the program. We also examine changes in the behaviors of the most important species of all in this process: humans.

 
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expected outcome #1

Improve habitat

Using a data-driven approach to evaluate the ability of the Audubon Society’s Bring Conservation Home program to establish and manage wildlife friendly yard and garden habitats.

expected outcome #2

Increase biodiversity

As a consequence of the alteration of the habitat, we expect increased native pollinator and bird diversity and abundance, and hopefully decreased mosquito prevalence.

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Expected outcome #3

Engage stakeholders

As part of our outreach efforts, we will communicate with stakeholders and decision makers on best practices for improving habitat in urban areas and how to foster homeowner-based conservation programs.