Allen Centennial Garden Bee Hotel
The UW–Madison Green Fund supports student ideas that improve campus sustainability, including this project!
For more information, contact Ian Aley at iraley@wisc.edu
Project Background
Students from Bees Please, Engineers for a Sustainable World, and The People’s Farm (formerly F.H. King Students for Sustainable Agriculture) worked with Allen Centennial Garden staff and entomology department students and faculty to design and install this bee hotel. It is a home for native solitary nesting bees.
According to the U.S forest service, pollinators provide an essential ecological survival function, where almost all terrestrial ecosystems on earth rely on the successful pollination and thus production of plants and crops. Conservation of native pollinator habitats is an important initiative since 40% of invertebrate pollinator species, specifically bees and butterflies, face the issue of extinction.
Bee Campus USA brings college communities together to sustain pollinators by increasing the abundance of native plants, providing nest sites, and reducing the use of pesticides. UW–Madison has earned the Bee Campus USA certification and hopes to establish habitats to promote the conservation of native bees. One way to do this is by building a nesting box for native bees at the Allen Centennial Garden.
Get Involved
Make your own Bee Hotel
There are always opportunities to help pollinator species, even around your home! Making a bee hotel in your garden is a great way to help the bees and to also the increase the species diversity in your own backyard.
Bee Hotel Maintenance
Want more information on different pollinator species and types of habitats they prefer? This fact sheet can help you understand the common pollinators in your area and their needs. Allen Centennial Bee Hotel Management Plan
Help out at the Allen Centennial Garden
There are many opportunities to volunteer at the Allen Centennial Garden and learn more about this project and many others.
Monitor Pollinators
If you would like to help monitor pollinators on campus, please email Victoria Salerno, Bee Campus Project Assistant: <a href="mailto:“vasalerno@wisc.edu”">vasalerno@wisc.edu</a>
Get Involved with the Green Fund!
If you would like to improve the sustainability of the UW–Madison campus by getting involved with a Green Fund project, please email Ian Aley, Green Fund Program Manager: <a href="mailto:“iraley@wisc.edu”">iraley@wisc.edu</a>
Pollinator Identification Resources
- Click here for a quick guide to identify bees and other pollinators.
- Click here to learn about and download the WiBee app for pollinator identification.
Bee Campus USA
Project Partners
Reba Luiken – Director
Isaac Zaman – Horticulturist
Ryan Dostal – Programs and Events Lead
Ian Aley – Green Fund Program Manager
Alex Frank – Project Portfolio Manager
Victoria Salerno – Project Assistant Application Materials
Are you interested in applying for the Green Fund for a similar project? Click on the link below to view the application for this project. For more information on application requirements, visit the Green Fund Application Information page or contact the Green Fund Program Manager, Ian Aley at iraley@wisc.edu