Rural
4 September, 2024
Buzz around bee-friendly planting program
Last week for farmers across the Wimmera Mallee to be paid simply for revegetating their land.
Bee Friendly Farming’s popular Tree Grants are back for another round, with farm owners across the region being offered support to plant more trees as food sources for bees.
Grants of up to $10,000 are available to farmers and land managers to plant pollinator-friendly trees that are indigenous to their farms.
Bee Friendly Farming provides farmers and land managers with $1 for every suitable tree added to a property, thanks to grant partner One Tree Planted.
The program is administered by Wheen Bee Foundation, whose CEO Fiona Chambers said the Tree Grants supported pollinators while also benefitting farmers.
“The Bee Friendly Farming Tree Grants program is a great opportunity to give landholders an extra incentive to expand their tree planting and provide habitat and diverse floral resources to support pollinators,” Ms Chambers said.
“The grants are one way the Bee Friendly Farming program supports and empowers landholders to manage their land in a way that both supports pollinators and enhances yields from crops.”
To receive a Tree Grant, a farm must be certified with Bee Friendly Farming.
The grants, which start at $1000, more than cover certification costs, making it both good for the environment and a sound business investment.
This is the third year in which Tree Grants have been offered.
So far, 33 Bee Friendly Farming-certified landholders across five states have been approved for grants totaling more than $81,000 to plant pollinator-friendly trees.
“The grant program has far exceeded our expectations in terms of area of certified land, coverage across Australia and the range of farmer enterprises signing up to be certified,” Ms Chambers said.
“To date the grant funding is helping establish 92ha of pollinator habitat, and that number continues to grow.”
One Tree Planted supports reforestation projects around the globe.
Last year the non-profit organisation planted more than 51 million trees across nearly 400 projects in 72 countries.
Each project is managed in partnership with local communities for objectives ranging from forest fire recovery to wildlife habitat expansion.
One Tree Planted Asia Pacific regional director Beth Dalgleish said the organisation was keen to continue the partnership and help increase biodiversity on farms and beyond.
“We're happy to play a role in encouraging food producers to prioritise pollinators and support the planting of locally native trees to attract bees and other beneficial insects,” Ms Dalgleish said.
Although standard grants of between $1000 and $10,000 are available, larger grant requests will be considered.
Applications must be received before 5pm AEST on Tuesday September 10.
Any farm that is not already Bee Friendly Farming certified can still participate by submitting an application before that deadline.
More information: www.beefriendlyfarming.org.au/tree-grants-application or info@beefriendlyfarming.org.au