Honeybees benefit from strips of native plants embedded in farmland

Small areas of native plants strategically placed in and around fields of soya and corn (maize) seem to improve honeybee colony health and performance in areas of intensive farming.

So-called prairie strips are being introduced in the US Midwest as part of a US Conservation Reserve Program policy aiming to improve water quality and biodiversity and reduce soil erosion.

Ge Zhang at Iowa State University and his colleagues compared the performance of honeybee colonies on corn and soya bean farms …