Attaboys aplenty to California, Arizona cotton industry Too many straws have emptied the bucket Managing food safety risks on the orchard floor
If there was one ray of sunshine from a recent regulatory convention I attended it was that regulators seem to understand twisting farmers under their collective thumbs may not be having the achieved effect when it comes to certain pesticide issues.
Take for instance all the talk about neonicotinoids and pollinators. While not conclusive, indications are that this new class of insecticide is having a detrimental impact on pollinators.
A story published in a large Central California newspaper should gain some attention as it reports a study suggesting that the residue of neonicotinoids can be found quite readily on the plants and in the potting soil of popular items sold by top retailers. In other words, farmers may not be solely responsible for bee colony collapse. The fault may lie with John and Suzie Q Homeowner.
Information published by the Pesticide Research Institute (PRI) suggests that neonicotinoid residues were detected in seven out of thirteen samples (54 percent) of commercial nursery plants.
According to the PRI report the problem is widespread. "Many home gardens have likely become a source of exposure for bees," the report states.
The Texas A&M Extension website has some interesting and useful information on the chemical, along with some helpful tips for homeowners and commercial growers alike.
While it is safe to say that certain classes of pesticides are not the only enemies of pollinators, neither are the farmers who use these chemicals the only ones to blame for honey bee deaths. If anything, growers are more in tune and better educated than their urban counterparts when it comes to the effective and proper use of chemical pesticides and herbicides. Truth be told, at least some of the blame may rest with urban homeowners who have very little understanding of chemical pesticides and literally no understanding of label application rates.
