MJV’s newest partner is Project Apis m. (PAm), a 501c5 organization. Founded in 2006, they are focused on honey bee health and crop pollination. PAm is a hub with strong ties to agriculture, including both growers and beekeepers, and researchers whose work informs bee health, beekeeping, and agricultural management practices. PAm sees their collaboration with these communities as a bridge to expand stewardship and conservation efforts from bees to monarchs and pollinators at large.
Project Apis m. supports honey bee health primarily through funding and directing practical honey bee health research projects, but also through forage programs. Seeds for Bees is a PAm program which provides free cover crop seed to growers. This program has provided cover crop seed mixes to improve soil conditions while meeting bees’ needs and has delivered close to 40,000 acres of blooming cover crops since 2017. Last year, PAm piloted monarch habitat projects through Seeds for Bees, working with participating growers who expressed an interest in supporting monarchs and native bees. To grow and improve this pilot program, they are working with MJV and other native pollinator partners to help advise and consult with growers on establishing perennial pollinator habitat on their farms.
PAm and MJV began collaborating last year and are thrilled to be formalizing their partnership! This spring and summer, MJV’s new Regional Pollinator Habitat Specialist, Wynter, has been working closely with Project Apis m.’s Director of Pollination Programs, Billy, who manages Seeds for Bees, and their network of growers to establish monarch habitat in the California Central Valley.
For more information Project Apis m. and their programs, please visit: https://www.projectapism.org/
The Monarch Joint Venture is a national partnership of federal and state agencies, non-governmental organizations, businesses and academic programs working together to conserve the monarch butterfly migration. The content in this article does not necessarily reflect the positions of all Monarch Joint Venture partners. Header photo courtesy of Project Apis m.