Pollinators

In 2017, the City of Faribault passed a Pollinator-Friendly Community resolution and emphasized its support of providing and maintaining vegetation on City property in a fiscally responsible manner that considers the health of people, plants and pollinators.

The City also understands that pollinators – including but not limited to, bees and butterflies – are critical to the health of the plants that support our agricultural and tourism economies. And, with pollinators on the decline in Minnesota and across the country due to a variety of pressures including habitat loss, pesticides, diseases, and parasites, the City has consistently worked to incorporate pollinator-friendly gardens within our parks and open space. 

A picture of three individuals from a gardening group, standing in front a mulch-filled garden, witAdditionally, various groups within the community have stepped up to help manage some of these gardens, including Gardeners Reaching out with Service (GROWS), which has partnered with the City for 26 years helping to buy trees for City parks thorough its annual Plant Sale, and maintaining the flower beds at Central Park.

The GROWS mission statement is “We believe that the surroundings we live in are important to us; that horticulture is essential to the mental, physical and emotional well-being of all. We strive to educate our members, enjoy gardening and its associated activities; and encourage members to actively participate in the beautification of our city.”

In 2017, GROWS launched a committee, called Partners for Pollinators, with the goal of increasing the publics’ awareness of pollinators, such as bees, butterflies and moths, in feeding humans and wildlife and sustaining the environment. 

Since the formation in 2017, Partners for Pollinators and the City have worked together to promote the planting of pollinator plots in Faribault and to educate the community about the importance of pollinators.

In 2019, Faribault was one of five Minnesota cities to receive an award from the Pollinator Friendly Alliance for adopting a Pollinator-Friendly Resolution. 

Enjoy some photos from GROWS members

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18

May is Faribault Pollinator Month

The City of Faribault and Grows (Gardeners Reaching Out with Service) have collaborated for over two decades planting and maintaining trees and gardens. Partners for Pollinators, an advocate group within GROWS, is working with the city to protect and restore pollinators to improve the environment and sustain our food supply. Join us, each May, in celebrating Faribault Pollinator Month.

Here are ways that you can help!

Bee Aware:

Pollinators - the bees, butterflies, moths , flies, beetles, etc. that we depend on for healthy ecosystems are disappearing at alarming rates.

Bee Thankful:

• 75 % of the flowering plants on the earth rely on pollinators (especially bees) to set seed or fruit.

• These plants, in turn, provide one -third of humankind’s food.

• Insect-pollinated seeds and fruits feed countless wildlife species.

(National Academy of Sciences)

Bee Informed:

Visit Buckham Corridor during the month of May to view a large Pollinator Photo Display, featuring area gardeners, and get information and resources to help you help our pollinators.

Bee a Dot on the Map:

We invite you (homeowners, businesses, schools, churches, etc.) to join our group of advocates who plant native plant gardens to create corridors of healthy habitats for pollinators throughout Faribault. GROWS Partners for Pollinators has developed the “Bee a Dot on the Map” project and is working with the City

to help identify these native plant areas. Be a part of our team and let us install one of our Pollinator Habitat signs in your garden to let others know that your plantings are intentional and to create an awareness of the need to “go native”. Registration forms and information can be picked up at the Faribault Community Center – Parks and Recreation. Questions: ethartmanariz@gmail.com