Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
THE BUZZ<br />
EASTERN IOWA FARMER PHOTOS / JACKIE MILLER<br />
Some tools of the trade are the hive boxes that hold frames of wax combs, a vat of extracted honey, and a bee smoker that helps calm bees.<br />
crops as watermelon and squash, as well<br />
as for beets, onions and nuts among others<br />
plants. Higher yielding crops such as<br />
corn and soybeans primarily use self-pollination;<br />
however, a recent study shows<br />
that insects can have some value.<br />
While most soybean plants are self-pollinating,<br />
Lisa Schulte Moore, co-author<br />
of a study done by the Natural Resources<br />
and Ecology Department at Iowa State<br />
University, concluded that soybean yields<br />
are higher with the help of bee pollination.<br />
“Wild bees and honey bees can improve<br />
soybean yields upwards of 20%<br />
when they help to pollinate the soybean<br />
plants,” according to the study, which<br />
was released last year. The study compared<br />
these results to improvements in<br />
crop genetics and management factors,<br />
which ranged between 8% and 15% yield<br />
increases.<br />
GreenTech<br />
Spray Foam Insulation<br />
Smart Choice, Safe Result<br />
330 S. Sixth Ave., DeWitt, IA • 563-659-6323<br />
www.irwingreentech.com<br />
Left to right: Jim Irwin, Kane Grau and Chad Lorenzen<br />
GreenTech is a locally owned energy solution company<br />
that provides safe and efficient insulation services to<br />
farmers, businesses and homeowners who are seeking<br />
a competitively-priced and environmentally safe product.<br />
SAVE<br />
40%<br />
CALL GREENTECH AND<br />
LEARN ABOUT THE MANY BENEFITS<br />
OF SPRAY FOAM INSULATION and<br />
schedule your FREE estimate<br />
OR MORE<br />
ON YOUR<br />
ENERGY BILLS<br />
86 EASTERN IOWA FARMER | FALL 2022 eifarmer.com
Change language