Native Grass Cover Influences Forb Density in CP-42 Pollinator Plantings

In recent years, pollinator populations have greatly declined due to a large decrease in habitat. In order to combat this decline, government programs have provided farmers with incentives to convert cropland to pollinator habitat.1 Farmers are required to plant at least 9 insect-pollinated species, with 3 species each blooming in early, middle and late summer. Any grasses must be native and comprise no more than 25% of the seed mix.2 Because of the high cost of forb seed and relatively low cost of grasses, we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of this seed mix strategy. We predicted that higher native grass cover would not significantly impact pollinator resources, and that successful establishment of sown grasses and forbs would reduce weed invasion