To help bees through lean times, plant a variety of blooms

The lack of four-season food sources is one of the leading causes of the world's declining bee populations. At certain times of year, there simply isn't enough nutrition in the natural environment to fill the collective demand. Rapidly increasing urbanization, fencepost-to-fencepost farming, and pesticide use are among the factors reducing the diversity and abundance of flowering plant species. So what's a pollinator-dependent gardener to do? "Plant flowering plants," said Rebecca Finneran, a ho