Community Garden Magazine Issue Five January 2016 | Page 39

onEarth
The magazine of the Natural Resources Defense Council
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MAGAZINE

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EARTHWIRE

“Along with the wild bees' whereabouts, the researchers mapped their
declines, finding that populations dropped a stinging 23 percent between
2008 and 2013. Some of the biggest regions of loss were agricultural hot
spots like California, the Pacific Northwest, the upper Midwest and Great
Plains, western Texas, and the southern Mississippi River valley. Even worse,
many of the key crops in these areas, such as pumpkins, peaches, apples,
and blueberries, need wild pollinators in order to be their most fruitful.”

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