‘Tis the season when fireworks light up the sky, popsicles melt in the afternoon sun, and all the world seems alive and in bloom.

Synonymous with the celebration of summer is the familiar buzzing of bumblebees, dragonflies, and various other pollinators that are so critically important to support a healthy ecosystem – basically life as we know it. Over the years, however, our native bees, butterflies, bats, beetles, and birds have quietly begun to disappear due to stressors including habitat loss, pesticides, pathogens, and pests.

“Pollinators are critical to agriculture and sustaining life because plant growth occurs, and crops bear fruit because of cross pollination, or the exchange of pollen that happens from these pollinator species,” says Mike McClanahan, Transportation Manager with the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) Local Programs & Community Investments Division. “Basically, this means they're going from one plant to another looking for nectar and transferring the pollen along the way.”

Essentially, cross-pollination increases plant seed and fruit production, as well as the health and survival of diverse plant species. The survival of pollinators is an international concern because their declining numbers actively threaten the world’s food supply. McClanahan notes that, “We tell people all the time that if you don't have pollinators, you're not getting zucchini.”

TDOT’s Partners for Pollinators Working Group, a multi-agency collaboration between the Tennessee Department of Transportation, Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, is determined to change this downward trajectory for pollinators and, by extension, humans.

Working within language included in the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, a national transportation funding law, the TDOT Highway Beautification Office created its Pollinator Habitat Program. In consultation with ecologists and landscape architects, Tennessee has adopted a multifaceted approach that includes building and maintaining pollinator habitats alongside 13,807 miles of state-maintained roadways and establishing habitats at Welcome Centers and rest stops.

Additionally, the program has altered spraying protocols and modified roadside mowing schedules by reducing mowing to swaths along the edge of roadways, therefore encouraging pollinators to establish residence.

On April 11, 2024, Governor Bill Lee signed a proclamation declaring the week of June 17 Tennessee Pollinator Week, promoting wise conservation stewardship via the protection of pollinators and their habitats. The culmination of this is Project Milkweed, which began in

June 2023 as a milkweed seed giveaway developed to encourage communities, volunteer groups, and homeowners to help restore and develop new pollinator habitats within the state.

Due to an overwhelming response in 2023, when 780,000 packets of seed were distributed, the project has continued this year, offering a total of 350,000 Red Milkweed and Common Milkweed seed packets for distribution to Tennessee residents.

Red Milkweed, also called Swamp Milkweed, is best for small gardens and is a native perennial which is commonly found in swamps, river bottomlands and wet meadows. Common Milkweed is a native perennial which occurs in fields, open woods, roadsides, and along railroad tracks throughout much of North America. Upon flowering, milkweed seed pods ripen and split open, releasing seeds that are dispersed by the wind. Milkweed flowers are a nectar source and thus very attractive to Monarch butterflies and other pollinators as a source of food.

“Essentially, milkweed is a host plant for Monarch butterflies, and while they’re taking the nectar from the milkweed the pollen will attach itself to their legs and bodies, causing them to transfer it to other plants,” explains McClanahan.

Beginning Pollinator Week and lasting until all seed packets have been distributed, orders are placed online for up to five packets, which are sent out with instructions for ensuring successful germination. Currently, half of the 350,000 available packets have been claimed.

“Last year, we had an initial amount of seed material that quickly sold out, so we ordered more, and after we went through that we went viral,” says McClanahan “Because of the response, we realized there was a huge demand and that people really wanted to take action. We’ve been heartened by the response from the public, and we’re learning that so many Tennesseans want to do the right thing by planting milkweed for pollinators.”

Once again, in their eagerness to ensure the survival of our native pollinators, Tennesseans are proving that Tennessee indeed lives up to its moniker … the Volunteer State.

For more information on TDOT’s Pollinator Habitat Program, or Project Milkweed, go to https://tnpollinators.org.