New Garden Brings Bees and Other Pollinators to BSC

BSC Ag Professor Ahmed Rady plants Western Yarrow, a plant that will produce white flowers once mature.

On May 12, several Bismarck State College faculty and staff members gathered to bring a plan conceived by the college’s agriculture students to life. Using only their trowels to break the ground, they spent the day planting an array of native prairie grasses and flowers along Bismarck State College’s Wellness Trail, located behind the National Energy Center of Excellence. 

The idea for the garden took root nearly a year and a half ago, when BSC Ag Club students came up with a project to benefit the greater community by providing a habitat for local pollinators while adding to the natural beauty of the campus. With the help of BSC soil professor and Ag Club adviser Marko Davinic, the Ag Club members successfully applied for a grant from the USDA, resulting in the allocation of $2,000 for plants for the garden. Most of the plants were sourced from a nursery in Wilton, N.D. Because the plants arrived after the agriculture students had left for the year to take part in internships; the garden was planted by Professor Davinic; Agriculture, Technology, and Natural Resources (ATNR) Lab Coordinator Wayne Olson; and Assistant ATNR Teaching Professors Harlee Kilber and Ahmed Rady. 

The garden may not look like much now, but as the plants mature and the flowers bloom, it will become a hub for butterflies, moths, bees, wasps, drone flies, and other beneficial pollinators who will flit among the fronds of swaying foliage, heading from one flower to the next in search of nectar and simultaneously collecting pollen on miniscule hairs as they do. When the pollen has been carried from a male flower to a female flower of the same species, the plant is successfully fertilized, enabling it to reproduce. At the same time, the flowers’ nectar nourishes the pollinators, forming a symbiotic relationship between the two parties. 

The relationship between plant and pollinator benefits a third party, too: humans. Fertilization is necessary to the growth of the fruits and vegetables people eat as well as the seeds that they plant. In fact, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that 35% of the world’s crops rely on animal pollinators to reproduce. Thus, BSC’s pollinator garden will not only provide aesthetic and environmental benefits, it will also directly support local farmers as well, who rely on these pollinators for the success of their crops.  

According to the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, North Dakota has already lost as much as 72% of its native prairies. This fact has meant a drastic reduction in habitat not just for pollinators but also for birds and other animal species. 

“I’m sure we’re … going to attract not just pollinators,” Davinic said. He listed pheasants and deer among other visitors he expects to move into the area as a result of the new habitat.  

Plans to expand the garden are already underway. New plants will be grown in BSC’s greenhouse by propagating the plants currently in the garden, meaning these new seedlings will be able to be planted further along the trail at a fraction of the cost it took to get started. Additionally, Davinic has said that signs identifying the plants will be placed in the garden to further increase its value as an educational tool. This addition will blend seamlessly into the current agriculture curriculum, where students are already asked to identify native plants in the wild. This garden ensures that the required plants will potentially be readily available and preserved for years to come. 

Anyone interested in seeing the garden at its most vibrant can head over to the Health and Wellness Trail and check it out before the end of the season.