Maggie Schwed

This tree, formerly called Sophora japonica and now known as Styphnolobium japonicum (Japanese pagoda tree/Chinese scholar tree) went into the ground of the front pasture at Stone Barns in 2018, in memory of a friend of the farm. In the years when I was the beekeeper at the farm, I had begged for the tree, having learned it was a terrific resource for honey bees. It has had good years and lousy years – including a year when the deer rubbed their antlers against the slim trunk, nearly killing it. But this year it had an excellent bloom, and it has filled out to be a handsome tree, very popular with honey bees from our nearby apiary. This year, however, is the second time I have seen it hugely appreciated by the large and glamorous Megachile sculpturalis (the giant resin bee). The fourth image shows you the way Megachile species collect pollen on the underside of their abdomens. A few years ago, the resin bees were almost all male; this year they are almost all female. But what is interesting is that the tree is a non-native, haling from China and Japan – and so is the bee. Highly compatible. The other plant frequented by this bee around here is the perennial pea, Lathyrus latifolium, which is said to have been brought the the US in the 1700’s, originating in South America and East Africa…so the bee is a generalist. Non-natives indeed, but a valued part of the diversity.