Due to the much publicized and well researched problems caused by neonicotinoids, the Environmental Protection Agency has banned 12 pesticides because of the harmful effect neonicotinoids have on bees, according to “Good News for Bees and the Environment” by Lyn Chimera.
Unlike traditional pesticides, “neonics” are systemic, meaning that when taken up by the root system, the entire plant becomes toxic to insects.
That article is one of the three articles in this month’s edition of WNY Gardening Matters, produced by the Master Gardeners of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Erie County.
Read all of “Good News for Bees and the Environment” here.
The other two articles are:
More Information on Late Blight by Elizabeth Buck. This disease affects tomato plants, and because it can spread so easily, we gardeners have to work together to control it. Find out more about how late blight spreads.
“Biological Control for Knotweed” by Larraine Van Slooten. Knotweed can grow up to eight inches per day and get 10 feet tall. It grows along streams, choking out native plants and limiting access to the water for recreation. It’s hard to eradicate and is listed among the “world’s worst invasive species” by the World Conservation Union. But an insect that is a natural enemy of knotweed may be able to help.
